The Wizard, the Smurfs and the Curse of the Black Shards
by caseyjsaisi
Summary: Sequel to The Wizard and His Cat. Gargamel is about to face his biggest challenge yet. While having his godniece, Denisa stay with him, Gargamel and the Smurfs discover the Black Shards, dangerous rocks that carry dark magic. To save their home, they must stop the spreading shards and undo a deadly curse before it's too late. Rated T for violence, nudity, blood and dark themes.
1. Prologue

Long, long ago, deep within a forest, there were good, tiny blue creatures, Smurfs. They lived in peace, harmony and did things the happy, smurfy way.

Outside their happy village was their enemy, the evil wizard Gargamel. He wanted to obtain all of the Smurfs' magic and become the world's powerful wizard. But luckily, the Smurfs find their ways to outsmart the wicked wizard and his loyal pets, Azrael and Monty in order to keep their lives filled with happiness and kindness from the natural forces of evil.

But, there are those who dare to challenge either the Smurfs or Gargamel with dark and dastardly plans that could possibly destroy the entire world.

Suddenly, black, sharp, icicle-like rock shards emerge from the ground and surround an innocent, fragile flower, destroying it. Then, the shards approach the reader.


	2. Gargamel's Nightmare

**_The Wizard, the Smurfs and the Curse of the Black Shards_**

* * *

It was a fine spring morning, the snow was slowly melting, the flowers had begun to grow and blossom, and the birds were singing sweetly throughout the kingdom and countryside.

In town, it was busy as a beehive for today was the annual Spring Festival. People from near or far would come to celebrate the day and join the festivities. All except for one.

Out in the forest, Gargamel was moaning and groaning. The bright sun had woken him up early that morning and he really hated springtime.

"I hate nature" complained Gargamel.

"How gaudy. The grass, the flowers. And I really hate Smurfs!"

However as he searched for any trace of the Smurfs, Gargamel noticed that the clouds above were slowly turning black and he heard thunder rumbling.

"Oh, no" he gasped.

Heavy rain poured down on the wizard as he ran back to his castle and tried to avoid stepping in puddles.

But as he reached the bridge that led to his home, lighting struck and the entire bridge started to fall apart.

"No! No, no!" Gargamel cried.

He ran to get on the other side, but on the last step, he fell down the rocky cavern with a long, bloodcurdling scream.

"HELLLPPPP MEEEEEEE!"

In his room, Gargamel was tossing and turning, still inside his bad dream.

Azrael was curled up on his master's body, sleeping peacefully.

And then suddenly, Gargamel shot up awake with a loud...

"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

Azrael yowled as he was sent flying off his master's lap and hit right on the wall.

Gargamel panted, with fear in his eyes and his skin was pasty white.

"Another bad dream" moaned the wizard.

"Gargamel! Open up!" demanded a voice.

Despite his anxiety, Gargamel knew whose voice that was.

He got up and opened the door.

"Hello, Papa Smurf" said a tired Gargamel.

"Come outside with me" said the old Smurf.

Gargamel followed Papa Smurf to the bridge. They were in their night clothes, but it was okay. Nobody else was going to bother them.

"That was the tenth nightmare that you woke up the entire Smurf Village this month" said Papa Smurf.

"I know, I'm sorry" answered Gargamel.

"What happens in these dreams?"

Knowing he might feel nervous talking about it, Gargamel told Papa Smurf that each dream involved him in danger and nobody to save him.

"I can help you, Gargamel."

"Never!"

Papa Smurf knew what Gargamel hated. And it was Smurfs. But, that didn't stop him.

"Gargamel, please..." said Papa Smurf, slowly.

"Papa Smurf, you know why I hate Smurfs and what I intend to do on you and the others." Gargamel said angrily. "So.. I can't let you help me."

Then, Papa Smurf finally gave up.

"I'm sorry, Gargamel" he said.

As the old Smurf left, Gargamel sighed sadly and starred at the stars in the night sky.

Azrael, who had overheard them, ran to Gargamel's side and rubbed against his master's leg.

"I know, Azrael, I know" the wizard cooed.

"I just wish someone would understand how I feel."

Both the wizard and his cat stayed on the bridge and looked out the stars throughout the cold night.

 ** _To be continued..._**


	3. Springtime

In Smurf Village, the Smurfs were cleaning the snow off their mushrooms and decorating with flowers. It was their favorite time of the year: the First Day of Spring. They would celebrate and sing all day long.

Papa Smurf and Smurf Willow watched over their little Smurfs, boys and girls. They were very proud leaders.

Later that morning, the Smurfs were picking smurfberries for lunch.

"Ah" sighed Papa Smurf "Nothing like a morning to pick smurfberries."

"Do you do this smurfberry picking this late in the morning?" asked Smurf Blossom excitedly.

"No" answered Smurfette. "We actually come here once in a blue moon."

As soon as they finished gathering smurfberries, the Smurfs returned to the village and had their annual Springtime Feast.

"This is quite a smurfy meal, Baker Smurf" said Papa Smurf.

"Thank you, Papa Smurf" replied Baker Smurf. "I have been loving this job for a hundred years."

Once lunch was finally finished, all of the Smurfs resumed their daily activities. _Everyone_ , expect Hefty and Smurfette.

It didn't take them long for Papa Smurf to finally stop them at the log entrance to the village.

"Well, I know two Smurfs who have some explaining to do" he said.

"We're only going Smurfboarding, Papa Smurf" answered Hefty.

"Yeah" agreed Smurfette. "Just me and Hefty"

Papa Smurf chuckled to himself and then nodded his head.

"Just don't get into trouble and stay away from the Forbidden Forest" he said in a fair, but firm tone.

Smurfette and Hefty laughed as they left as Papa Smurf stood, confused.

"Be safe" he whispered.

But, Papa Smurf then decided to take "a stroll" to watch Hefty and Smurfette. It was a long walk to follow their footsteps, but it was worth it.

He hadn't gone far until he came to the meadow and saw...

"Gargamel?"

"Go away" sighed the wizard sadly.

He was sulking inside a net, hanging on a tree branch. The same tree where Azrael's assumed burial would took place.

But, Papa Smurf approached Gargamel carefully.

"I'm surprised to find you here, but aren't you supposed to attempt to capture us?" asked the old Smurf.

"No, not today" answered Gargamel. "I trapped myself for the day until nightfall."

Not wanting his enemy to stay inside the net too long, Papa Smurf freed Gargamel and gave him an apple.

"Is something wrong?" asked Papa Smurf.

"Well, Papa Smurf..." Gargamel sighed. "I'm tired of these nightmares that keep coming to me at night."

Papa Smurf understood what Gargamel was saying, but he wasn't sure why it's happening and he wasn't going to ask his enemy how he got them.

"Just try not to think of it" Papa Smurf finally said.

"I'm trying, Papa Smurf" answered Gargamel. "I just have one question, do you Smurfs think I'm a monster?"

"Gargamel, you're not a monster. You're a human being who is..."

"Who is what? Ugly? Smelly? Evil?"

"No, Gargamel, you just don't understand life like you used to when you were younger and didn't chased us."

The poor wizard nodded his head slowly.

"Look, the problem is that..." Gargamel said softly, he stopped in mid-sentence. "No, no, I'm not telling you."

"Tell me" replied Papa Smurf.

"NO!" yelled the wizard angrily. "Even if I wanted I could, but I can't! It's too painful to explain!"

"Oooh, what's going on over here?" asked a voice.

Papa Smurf and Gargamel looked over to see a Smurf with a pair of binoculars spying on them from the bushes.

"None of your business, Nosey Nose!" growled Gargamel.

"Well, alright, wizard" answered Nosey Smurf.

Then, he spoke with Papa Smurf. "You need to come back to the village, Papa Smurf."

"Why?" asked Papa Smurf, confused.

"Well, it was Jokey's fault"

"WHAT?!" screamed Papa Smurf in shock.

"Yep. He blew up Handy's mushroom with one of his surprises."

As Nosey left, Papa Smurf thought it over.

"I'll be right there, Nosey" he called.

Before he could go with Nosey, Papa Smurf gently touched Gargamel's arm.

"You know what, Gargamel?" he asked. "Even without magic provided by Smurf essence, you are powerful than you think you are."

As soon as Papa Smurf left him, Gargamel walked over to the pond and stared at his reflection, thinking of what Papa Smurf said to him.

Sure, he hated the Smurfs ever since he first met them, but he knew deep inside that he felt guilty, but he still wanted to prove his worth to the world.

 _You are powerful than you think you are... without Smurf essence?_ he thought to himself. _I don't think I am powerful without magic._

* * *

When he got back to the castle, Gargamel was going through the potions that expired. The ones that were worthless, he smashed the vials against a bucket and the liquids in the bucket were disposed over the bridge.

However, a loud slam on the door startled him.

"Uh, uh, won't you come in, whoever you are" he stammered.

Azrael and Monty gasped and spun around towards the door.

"Forgotten about me already, Gargamel?!" screeched a loud voice.

Azrael meowed fearfully and ran up to the tower.

"Oh, hello, Mummy" whimpered Gargamel.

When she approached Gargamel, his mother could tell that her son wasn't feeling well.

"Are you being a quitter again?" she asked rudely.

"No" moaned Gargamel. "Having those dreadful nightmares again. And they're getting worse every night."

Hearing this, Gargamel's mother cocked an eyebrow.

"And then, I wake the entire forest with a loud scream" he continued.

"A loud scream?" scoffed Gargamel's mother.

"When I gave birth to you on the day you were born, it was so painful and I screamed loud enough for the mountains to create an avalanche."

Monty rolled his eyes and then flew off.

Upstairs, Azrael quietly chuckled at his master's mother's comment.

"I wish that you would treat me with respect like you did before Father left us" Gargamel exclaimed nervously. "You're treating me like everyone else! Treating me like I'm nothing."

Then, he threw himself on a chair with a heavy huff.

Gargamel's mother was taken back by her son's attitude, but she didn't to upset him either.

"I'm sorry, Gargy" she said. "There is nothing I can do for you. But, there is something you can do for me."

She gently lifted her son's head with her hand.

"You have a godniece."

"What?" asked a shocked Gargamel.

"A godniece. She's six and a half years old and her mother is recovering from an illness. I can't take care of her. But, she will feel happy with you. I want you to be extra nice to her, she's going through a hard time as we speak."

Gargamel was baffled of what his mother had told him. He has a godniece?

"But, I can't babysit, Mummy" he said nervously.

"Too bad" his mother answered. "Your her only family left other than me. She has to stay with you."

 _A child I don't know staying with me?_ thought Gargamel. _Oh, sure, what's the worse that could happen?_

"Fine" said Gargamel.

"Good" replied his mother, getting to leave. "Be ready for her when I bring her over in three days."

The door slammed shut and Gargamel was left in the dark once again.

"I just hope this godniece doesn't give me trouble like the Smurfs do" said Gargamel.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	4. The Black Shards

**_Prepare yourself for the birth of the dark magic that could threaten the Smurfs and Gargamel._**

* * *

In another part of the forest, a group of witches and their boss, an old, ugly dwarf named Zherlon Sven were surrounding a boiling cauldron.

"I don't think we should use this, Zherlon" said one witch, fearfully.

"Don't be a coward" barked Zherlon. "We lost time of south. And not all of witches and dwarfs doesn't take kindly to Mother Nature's rules."

The other witches watched nervously as Zherlon threw a chestnut into the cauldron.

"Sir, we can't spill this stuff" chimed one witch.

"Yes" answered another. "Innocent people shouldn't deal with the consequences of this spell!"

But as soon as Zherlon dropped small rocks into the cauldron, the witches were suddenly blown away and they crashed to the floor.

"What happened?" asked a witch.

"The spell blew up!" answered another.

"What do you mean the spell blew up?" asked Zherlon. "Give it something to relax!"

"I got nothing on the spell book, Mr. Sven" said Mei, an apprentice witch.

"Come, Mei, my apprentice" barked Zherlon. "Bring it outside."

All of the witches brought the cauldron outside their hut, where the moonlight shined bright, but it seemed like the sky was getting darker.

It wasn't until Mei quickly looked at the spell book and then realized what Zherlon was planning to do with the spell.

"Black Shards" gasped Mei. "Capable of death, destruction and dark magic. Poured on a night of a solar eclipse."

"POUR THE CAULDRON!" bellowed Zherlon.

But, Mei had enough.

"Never!" she cried.

The other witches gasped with shock and surprise. But, Zherlon wanted to take no notice.

While this was happening, the moon was a few moments away from being hit by the sun's light.

"I said pour the spell!" he repeated.

"I can't let you do this, Sven!" replied Mei.

The two were fighting over the cauldron.

"Zherlon! We have five seconds!" hollered a witch.

The moon was close to be hit by the light of the sun.

"Three seconds!"

"I! WON'T! LET! YOU!" screamed Mei in vain.

But, it was too late!

The light of the eclipse hit the cauldron, causing the spell inside to glow brightly. The witches screamed as the light blinded their eyes.

Zherlon and Mei, blinded by the light, dropped the cauldron and the spell poured out. As it spread across the forest, black icicle-like rock shards emerged from the ground and as they grew, they became so sharp that it could kill a man.

Animals fled and flowers died as the Black Shards approached them.

Nothing can stand in their way on their path of destruction.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	5. Denisa

**_I decided to add Denisa to the story,_** _ **so I wouldn't feel like Gargamel was talking to himself.**_

 ** _In this story, Denisa is still the character she was in the original cartoons, but she is more adventurous and she pities her "uncle" Gargamel (kinda like Sassette)._**

* * *

Three days passed and the forest was buzzing with fear about the news of the Black Shards approaching.

Even the Smurfs had learned about the Black Shards from their glowing rabbit friend Bucky and Spitfire, SmurfStorm's dragonfly.

"What are we going to do, Papa Smurf?" asked Brainy.

"We'll need to find out what these Black Shards are and put a stop to it" answered Papa Smurf.

"Shouldn't we warn everyone else?" wondered Smurfette.

"We probably should" nodded Papa Smurf.

Brainy left the mushroom to warn all the other Smurfs, but Papa Smurf wanted Smurfette to do something for him.

"Now, Smurfette" he said. "You won't believe I want you to do. Go warn Gargamel about the Black Shards and tell him to meet me at the old oak by sundown."

"And if he captures me to tell him where Smurf Village is?"

"Well... Just tell write him a letter about it."

Smurfette agreed and left Papa Smurf's mushroom.

* * *

Meanwhile, Gargamel was trying to get Azrael to eat a mouse he had caught with one of his freeze balls.

"Azrael, the mouse is only frozen!" growled Gargamel, annoyed by his cat. "It will thaw out inside your mouth in a few minutes."

Azrael hissed and ran off.

"Ingrate" moaned Gargamel.

Then, a soft knock was heard.

"Ooh, who could that be?" grumbled Gargamel as he walked to the door.

He opened the door to find... Nobody.

Confused, Gargamel just decided it was his imagination and was about to close the door.

"Huh. Good riddance."

But he was stopped with a high-pitched voice saying...

"Hey!"

Gargamel turned around to see a small, cute, young girl with black hair in a red bow, Snow White-like pale skin and was dressed in a long, pretty purple dress.

She giggled with a bright smile.

"I'm sorry, kid" Gargamel answered rudely. "I am not interested in your reading to me. I'm not that old."

"No, I'm not here to read" snapped the girl. "I'm here 'cause..."

"Look, I don't have much food to feed an urchin" interrupted Gargamel. "I can only feed me and my pet cat and mighty bird."

"No" whined the girl. "I..."

"Look, kid, I appreciate your time" lied Gargamel. "But, I have to go to bed. So, go back to your mother and leave me be."

He gently closed the door.

"Whew! That was crazy, Azrael" the wizard said to his feline companion. "That kid wanted to have a play date with me."

Azrael protested and tried to tell him who the girl was.

"Azrael, there is no way that child could be..."

He was then interrupted by a loud knock on the door.

"Ooh! That kid again?" complained the wizard.

He went to the door.

"Listen, you brat, I told you to go..."

But, he screamed to see his mother at the door with the girl standing behind her.

"Gargamel! Have you forgotten our talk three days ago?!" she snapped.

"Why, why, no, Mummy" stammered Gargamel, lying. "You see, I-I-I..."

Then, the girl chuckled.

"This man is funnier than I thought" she said. "I'm gonna like staying here."

Gargamel was confused.

"Staying where exactly?" he asked.

"Here" answered his mother. "Gargamel, meet Denisa, your very own godniece. Denisa, this your _uncle_ Gargamel.

"Hi, Uncle Gargy" said Denisa, cheerfully.

"My godniece?!" shouted Gargamel. "No one said she was my godniece. She wouldn't last a week with me!"

"Just take it easy on her" replied Gargamel's mother in a soft voice so Denisa couldn't hear her.

"She's going through this since her mother has pneumonia."

"All right, all right" said Gargamel, giving up.

Then, he tried to act nice to Denisa who was passing by him with her luggage.

"Can I carry your bag for you?" Gargamel asked.

"No" answered Denisa sadly.

As Gargamel watched Denisa walked off, he had a very strange feeling that she reminds him of a child who was once happy and was very much liked by his kind.

Just before he could leave, Gargamel's mother gave him a dirty look.

"What?!" jumped Gargamel.

"You better not let that girl out of your sight, Gargamel" warned his mother.

She then snatched a glass vial from the floor and tighten her fist.

"Or else."

Gargamel gasped as the vial broke in his mother's hand.

"Uh, yes, yes" answered Gargamel nervously. "Don't lose Denisa or else. Whatever you say, Mummy."

The door slammed shut and Gargamel sighed.

"Sweet mercy" he groaned. "Now I've got four mouths to feed."

Watching from a window, Smurfette was surprised to see what happened before her.

 _ **To be continued...**_


	6. First Night

_**This has to be the longest chapter I've ever done in a while. Hope you enjoy this chapter.**_

* * *

For the first three hours of his first visitor, other than his mother, Gargamel was annoyed by Denisa and her happiness. To him, it felt annoying than the Smurfs whenever he caught them.

She would be on the floor, singing and playing with her dolls that she packed with her.

"Do you ever stop singing?" asked Gargamel, finally had enough.

Denisa shook her head.

"No, Uncle Gargy" she replied. "I love to sing."

Gargamel ignored her and started to search for any sign of the Smurfs on his telescope.

"Can you at least play with me, Uncle Gargy?" whined Denisa. "I'm lonely!"

"I don't care" hissed Gargamel. "And don't call me Gargy. It's Gar...ga...mel."

"Are you sure it's not Gargasmell?" Denisa snapped back.

Gargamel was taken back.

Azrael snickered and used his claws to scratch on the wall.

He creates a tally chart and marks Denisa.

Hearing this, Gargamel groaned and stormed out of the room.

Denisa rolled her eyes and resumed playing with her toys.

In the kitchen, Gargamel was trying to search for food to treat Denisa to a wonderful dinner, but he hated being nice to others.

He checked all cupboards to see if he had food, luckily he did have some left for two. But when he tried to check for water, coco powder and/or milk, the entire castle was filled a loud...

"OOOOWWWWWWW!"

Azrael had to remove a mousetrap from Gargamel's hand and free Denisa out of a net after she accidentally setting off a trap meant for the Smurfs.

"Azrael, you had catch me red handed?" frowned Gargamel.

Azrael nodded yes with pride, but Gargamel cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Uncle Gargamel, what was with the net?" asked Denisa.

Azrael stared at Gargamel with innocent eyes, begging his master to tell Denisa the truth.

"That was for... intruders" lied Gargamel.

Then, he got up and went outside, leaving Denisa suspicious about her uncle.

 _Why is he acting so strange?_ she thought to herself. _Mummy and my auntie_ _never told me that my uncle was like that._

As soon as Gargamel went outside, he tried to act if everything was normal. But, he eventually gave up.

Sighing sadly, Gargamel collapses in despair.

"I can't keep up with this" he said weakly. "I shouldn't have agreed to have Denisa here."

Then, he felt a touch on his leg.

"Psst! Gargamel!" whispered a voice.

The wizard looked down to see Papa Smurf close to his feet.

"Oh, hello, Papa Smurf" moaned Gargamel.

"Smurfette saw that your godniece was delivered here" said Papa Smurf.

"Yes. Yes, she is. But, I hate children!"

"I understand, Gargamel. I thought I would come over instead of having you come to the old oak tree."

But, Gargamel didn't understand why Papa Smurf was here.

So, Papa Smurf had to crave out the origins of the Black Shards on a pile of firewood. As the old Smurf craved the story onto the log, Gargamel felt like panicking on the inside.

"If we don't find a way to stop this dark magic from threatening our homes" said Papa Smurf. "We will all be in grave danger."

"Alright" replied Gargamel. "I think Denisa and I can come over first thing in the morning."

Papa Smurf nodded in agreement and went across the bridge.

* * *

At dinner, Denisa felt calmer now that Gargamel was back inside.

She gasped in surprise as Gargamel was digging into the food.

"Are you seriously eating all that's left on the table, Uncle Gargamel?" Denisa frowned.

"I haven't eaten all day" he said to Denisa.

"You haven't eaten all day?"

"No. I'm too scared from my mother's warning. She said I'd better not let you out of my sight or else. She's worried that if you got kidnapped, or man handled, or maybe even killed with tons and tons of..."

Then, Denisa started to cough. She grabbed a cloth and covered her mouth, allowing herself to cough the food out from her mouth and into the cloth.

"Do you mind, Uncle Gargamel?" she glared. "I can't talk about that stuff while I'm eating dinner."

Gargamel was not sure how to respond, but he kept his mouth shut.

Then, Denisa heard a loud crunch. She turned to see Monty chewing on a chicken skeleton.

"Ewww!" recoiled Denisa. "Monty killed that chicken!"

"Well, we had to get rid of the bones" responded Gargamel.

"But, that chicken didn't do anything to anyone."

Denisa continued to eat.

"I'm not mean to animals" she muttered quietly.

Azrael watched from the floor and then patted Gargamel's leg.

"No, Azrael" warned Gargamel. "No meat for you."

Annoyed, Azrael went to Denisa's side of the table and patted her skirt.

Giggling quietly, Denisa fed Azrael some of her mashed potatoes.

"There you go, kitty" cooed Denisa.

Gargamel was confused until he saw what Denisa was doing, he gasped loudly.

"Denisa, you're not supposed to..." he shouted.

He was interrupted by a loud burp.

Azrael was sitting in the corner with a full belly.

Gargamel glared at Denisa, who laughed nervously.

"Um, excuse me" she said, getting up and left the table.

 _ **To be continued...**_


	7. The Discovery of the Black Shards

**_Alright, here's a chapter that might make your bones shiver. Enjoy!_**

* * *

The next morning, Gargamel woke up with a loud yawn.

Then, he went to the living room. Denisa had to sleep there on the soft chair since Gargamel didn't have a bed planned for her.

"Denisa, time to get up" Gargamel said, still waking up.

No one answered.

Gargamel snapped his eyes open in shock and gasped.

"What the... Oh, dear" he whispered.

He pulled the covers to find only Denisa's dolls laying on the chair.

"Sweet mercy!" Gargamel shouted, panicking. "I promised my mother that I won't let Denisa out of my sight! And now... MY GODNIECE IS KIDNAPPED! WHAT AM I GONNA DO..."

He was interrupted when he heard giggling.

Still panicking, Gargamel ran into the kitchen to find Azrael cooking breakfast with Denisa milking a black and white goat, which is standing over a bucket.

"Good morning, Uncle Gargamel!" sang Denisa.

"Morning" responded Gargamel, trying to relax.

"I thought you were sleeping."

"I thought you and the cat were cooking. Aren't you supposed to milk that goat?"

"I am" sighed Denisa, finished with her chore.

Gargamel scoffed as Denisa cleaned her hands in a separate bucket filled with soapy water.

"What?" asked Denisa. "I brought a bar of soap with me."

"I thought you were just a little rich girl who gets everything she wants" Gargamel replied.

"Hey! I don't always get everything I want" Denisa snapped back. "My mummy has a friend who is a farmer and he taught me how to milk."

"You're too little to do anything!"

"No, I'm not!"

Not wanting to argue any further, Gargamel left Denisa alone with Azrael.

"Why is he so mean, Azrael?" she asked.

The cat shook his head and answered in a sad tone.

"He doesn't like happiness?" gasped Denisa. "But why?"

Azrael answered as if to say "I don't know."

All Denisa could do was watch as Gargamel went up the stairs.

In his room, Gargamel stared outside his window. It was foggy, but the sun was trying to brighten the sky.

Gargamel sighed sadly as he thought of how he rudely responded to Denisa.

In his younger years, Gargamel was just like her; happy, full of life and always kind to his fellow man. Even in worse times, his mother was there for him... until he lost himself. Not just because of the Smurfs, or even the other wizard students bullied him, but of how he let his greed and anger took over. All because he wanted to prove himself worthy of a wizard.

Then, he remembered something.

He was supposed meet the Smurfs in the forest about whatever Papa Smurf had mentioned yesterday.

"Blue blazes!" exclaimed Gargamel. "We were supposed to be in the forest first thing."

He ran downstairs and quickly ate what was on his plate in a flash and had Denisa get dressed and get rid of the goat after she ate.

* * *

Afterwards, Gargamel brought Denisa, along with Azrael to the forest. But he didn't want Denisa to know anything about the Smurfs, however. So, he tried to find a way to have her stay out of trouble.

"Denisa, I want you to stay with Azrael and be a good girl, okay" he said in a fake, sweet voice.

"Aww, Uncle Gargamel" whined Denisa. "How come you get to go?"

"Denisa, how many times do I have to tell you? You're too little to handle anything dangerous. I am an adult. I will handle this."

 _He must think he's smart and I'm dumb, he's big and I'm small, and there's nothing I can do about it_ Denisa thought to herself.

Finally, Denisa stood her ground.

"If you don't let me come with you" she cried. "I'm gonna tell Auntie that you're being mean TO MEEEEEE!"

Her screams echoed the entire forest. Monty and Azrael jumped into Gargamel's arms, scared out of their wits.

"C-C-Calm down, Denisa" said Gargamel, nervously.

"Gargamel!" said a voice.

Recognizing whose voice it is, Gargamel pushed Denisa behind him.

"Uncle Gargamel, what are you doing..?" Denisa asked.

But, Gargamel cupped her mouth as Papa Smurf arrived with three other Smurfs, Brainy, Smurfette and SmurfStorm.

"Why hello, Papa Smurf" chuckled Gargamel nervously.

"Gargamel, we thought we heard a scream" said Papa Smurf. "Are you alright?"

"Oh, yes, yes. I'm fine" lied the wizard. "I was taking a stroll with Azrael. He usually makes that sound when he's being an ingrate."

Azrael tried to protest, but Gargamel pushed the cat away with his foot.

"Don't try to pull any tricks, wizard" warned SmurfStorm.

Denisa was struggling behind Gargamel.

"Hello! I can't breathe!" she said, her mouth covered by Gargamel's hand.

But, Gargamel was busy trying to distract the Smurfs.

"What is it look like I'm doing?!" shouted Gargamel.

"We came to show you what these Black Shards are, Gargamel" answered Smurfette.

"Oh, really, Smurfette? And where exactly are they?" mocked Gargamel.

"Right behind you" said Brainy, not interested in Gargamel's banter.

The Smurfs and Gargamel turned to see the Black Shards approaching from the forest pathway.

"Uh-oh" groaned Azrael.

"What.. are those?" asked Gargamel.

"Those are the Black Shards" replied Papa Smurf. "Brainy, we need information."

"I'm on it" answered Brainy.

He took his ladybug, Snappy and used him like a camera to take "pictures" of the Black Shards.

"Funny, they don't look dangerous" said Gargamel.

He tried to touch a Black Shard, but another one grew. It scared the wizard so badly that he hid behind a tree.

"Who could have done this and why would they?" Smurfette wondered.

"Probably to attack our village and kill us" said Brainy.

"Now, we don't know that, Brainy" Papa Smurf replied, thinking it over. "We need to figure out how to stop them, so we can save our homes."

Suddenly, Smurfette heard a laugh and watched as Denisa was chasing a butterfly.

"Wait!" Smurfette called. "Are you Gargamel's godniece?"

Denisa looked down to see Smurfette.

"Oh, um, yes" gasped Denisa. "But, who or what are you?"

"I'm Smurfette" answered Smurfette. "I'm a Smurf."

"You are so pretty. I even like your hair."

"Aww, thank you. And it's a pleasure meet you. What's your name?"

"Oh, my name is..."

"DENISA!" shouted Gargamel.

"You're not supposed to talk with the Smurfs."

"Why not?" asked Denisa.

"No, it's alright" Papa Smurf assured Gargamel. "We can trust her."

"How can we trust a human like her?" SmurfStorm asked, suspiciously. "She'll probably lead the wizard to our village."

"She wouldn't!" protested Smurfette.

But before the fight can go on, the ground began to shake.

Azrael screeched and jumped on Gargamel's bald head.

"What is that noise?" whimpered Smurfette.

And then suddenly, the Black Shards began to grow again and they were getting larger and they were approaching the Smurfs, Gargamel and Denisa!

"Oh, no!" screeched Denisa. "What are we gonna do?"

"This way!" shouted Papa Smurf, who ducked for cover into the bushes.

Gargamel grabbed Denisa and jumped into the bushes with the Smurfs. The Black Shards went past the bushes and continued to grow as it went down towards the hollow, only to stop at the bridge.

"They're heading toward the edge of the forest before Smurf Village" announced SmurfStorm.

Gargamel carefully picked up a small, thick piece of a Black Shard.

"We'll have to evacuate to the Forbidden Forest" said Papa Smurf, worried.

"The Forbidden Forest?!" shouted everyone else.

"But, Papa Smurf" said Smurfette, fearfully. "You said that the Forbidden Forest is forbidden."

"I know" replied Papa Smurf. "But, SmurfWillow said that she knows someone who knows about the Black Shards more than any wizard or witch in the world."

Then, Gargamel, Denisa and Azrael decided to leave the Smurfs for the night.

"Wow!" cheered Denisa. "Those Smurfs are so awesome! Who would imagine the happiest creatures in the whole wide world?"

"I could" groaned an annoyed Gargamel.

"I thought they were just a child's story, but now... They are real! It's not like somebody is gonna use those black rocks to harm them."

Then, Gargamel's eyes lit up in surprise.

"Or can you?" Gargamel cackled to Azrael, quietly.

Azrael meowed in a confused manner until Gargamel's hand revealed the small Black Shard piece.

Then, he and Gargamel shared evil grins.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**

 ** _Uh-oh! It looks like Gargamel is up to no good this time. Find out what his plan with a Black Shard in the next chapter._**


	8. Black Shard Spell

_**In honor of Rainn Wilson (the voice of Gargamel in Smurfs the Lost Village) on his 52nd birthday.**_

 _ **This might be the longest chapter I've ever done in a while since the previous chapter. I've been having a rough week and it was really bad, so please take it easy on me.**_

* * *

It was very tiring when Gargamel got home, but Denisa decided to play outside.

Once Gargamel and Azrael weren't looking, Denisa sneaked across the bridge and saw Smurfette.

"I'm so glad Papa Smurf said I can come over for a playdate" Denisa giggled.

"Me too" agreed Smurfette.

The two girls ran off into the forest.

Back inside the castle, Gargamel was flipping through the pages of each spell book he had on the shelf to find more information about the Black Shards.

"Let's see Black Shards... Black Shards..." he muttered to himself.

Gargamel was able to find one spell book that had a spell that could used to destroy anyone's home, even the Smurfs.

"I wonder why I didn't think of it before, Azrael" Gargamel said to his furry friend. "The solution to my problem with the... Smurfs."

Azrael rolled his eyes and watched as his master explained his plan to the cat and Monty.

"My plan with these Shards are plain, but simple" said the wizard. "Use the Black Shard spell to trap Smurf Village, capture the all of the evacuating Smurfs, drain them of their magic, and finally, use that magic to become the most POWERFUL WIZARD IN THE WORLD!"

Gargamel laughed evilly and placed the Black Shard on a table beside the cauldron.

"We wait until nightfall" he laughed.

But, Azrael meowed in protest.

"Azrael, I don't want to hear any of your constant yowling!" hollered Gargamel. "When I'm through with these Smurfs, I'll have all the power I have ever dreamed of! And no one can stop me!"

"Okay, see ya, Smurfette" called Denisa as she came into the door.

"AH HA! You can't hide from me, Smurf!" Gargamel shouted.

He threw a large butterfly net over Denisa, cheering over his victory and not knowing that his own godniece in the net.

"Ha, gotcha!"

"Don't butterfly net me!" cried Denisa.

"Yeah! Wait until I..."

Azrael shook his head and told his master who was in the net.

"What?!" Gargamel gasped.

He nervously got Denisa out of the net, but she was very angry for being captured.

"Uncle Gargamel, what was that for?" Denisa asked.

"Oh, nothing" said Gargamel, lying. "Just setting a trap for intruders again since you ruined the first net."

But, Denisa wasn't buying it.

"You were planning to capture the Smurfs?" she realized.

"Oh, no! I wouldn't dream of capturing the Smurfs when our homes are in danger" answered Gargamel.

"You leave my friends alone or I'll tell Auntie!"

Gargamel's eyes grew wide with shock.

"Them? They're your friends?" he scoffed. "Wh... Why would you befriend some creatures that I hate the most? You're a little girl!"

"I AM NOT LITTLE!" screamed Denisa.

The entire castle shook and a couple of glass vials shattered.

Then, it got so quiet. Gargamel rolled his eyes in anger.

"Ugh! You're such a pain" he grumbled to himself, but loud so Denisa can hear.

This made Denisa so angry.

"Why don't you send me away?" she asked rudely. "Find someone who _truly_ loves you!"

"At least someone who isn't as annoying as you!" Gargamel shouted back.

"Someone who is mean, sour, nasty and cruel! You'll even like her, cause she has no brains like you, and is evil and beautiful as your ugly face!"

"Keep talking, Denisa!"

"You know what, Uncle Gargamel? You treat everyone else like rubbish when they've done nothing to you just to get attention!"

Azrael didn't like how this was going between his master and Denisa. Even Monty was trying to ignore the argument.

"They've ruined me!" said Gargamel. "And gaining their magical essence will make me powerful!"

"You're powerful than you think you are!" Denisa snapped.

"What are you talking about? That's not true! You know wizards aren't powerful without magic!"

"You're not a wizard, you're nothing, but a monster!"

Denisa ran up the stairs, crying and slammed the door shut.

"This is so far out of my league" Gargamel said to Azrael. "She is feisty, spoiled and... remarkable. Just like I was back then"

Azrael meowed in question, not understanding. But, Gargamel snapped out of it and growled.

"Bah! She is nothing like me. And she'll never will be."

The wizard walked out of the room, leaving Azrael quite confused.

 _Hmm..._ Azrael thought to himself. If _Gargamel thinks Denisa is nothing like him, then why does he think she's remarkable? I wonder..._

* * *

It was finally night when Gargamel started to make the cauldron work.

"The spell book says that we have to simply add a gram of rattlesnake tails, hair of the wizard conjurer..."

Azrael had to snip a tiny bit of Gargamel's hair into the cauldron.

"Thank you, Azrael."

The cat nervously protested.

"Don't you see?" Gargamel said, with a wicked smile. "Once their village is destroyed by the Black Shards, the Smurfs will come begging for my help, only to fall into my trap."

Azrael was shocked, his master has gone mad.

"Now, all we need left is the power from the moon to enhance the power of the spell... Monty!"

The vulture opened the curtains Gargamel had made to cover the sunshine from entering his home, and the moonlight poured into the spell room. Even the cauldron was in the path of the moonlight.

"...and we first begin the incantation and then spell" Gargamel cackled.

Azrael and Monty backed away in fear as Gargamel dropped the Black Shard piece in and began to stir the cauldron with a stick.

" _Serpentro caudas... Lunar lux... Nec divinos capillum..._ " Gargamel said in a evil tone.

With Gargamel having to say the incantation four times, each ripple in the cauldron seemed to glow green, then, yellow, and then red, and then finally black.

" _To those who don't see the truth are unwise, shall see at night to look through another's eyes_ " he continued.

The cauldron glowed even brighter, and then suddenly...

KA-BOOM!

A flash of red, yellow and black colors emerged from the cauldron and they took the shape of the Black Shards and it showed a vision of the Black Shards in the hollow, suddenly growing bigger and is heading towards Smurf Village.

"Yes! It's working, Azrael!" gloated Gargamel.

The cat saw in the vision that the Black Shards were _indeed_ heading for Smurf Village.

"Soon, I will have what I should have 30 years ago. The power beyond my wildest dreams!"

Suddenly, the Black Shards in the vision stopped growing.

"What?! No!" Gargamel cried out in anger. "What's happening? I've done it correctly! Maybe the Shard I got was a fake."

Azrael ran over to Gargamel's side and read the spell book. Then, his eyes went wide as he saw a warning.

It read: "Do not touch the Black Shard from cauldron during the spell, for if you dip this fearful well, you shall suffer a great consequence!"

Scared of what would happen, Azrael meowed fearfully and begged Gargamel to stay away from the cauldron.

"Azrael, I know what I'm doing" replied Gargamel. "What could happen?"

But as he stuck his hand into the cauldron and touched the Black Shard piece, Gargamel suddenly cried out in pain!

He pulled his hand out of the cauldron, but the Black Shard, it was now magically combined with the rattlesnake tails and the hair used for the spell, suddenly stuck itself on his hand, making the wizard scream.

Azrael and Monty watched in fear.

Upstairs, Denisa didn't know how long she had been sleeping since she went to bed without supper, but she was woken up by a loud THUD! Like somebody had fallen to the ground.

"Oh, no! Uncle Gargy!" she cried.

She jumped out of bed and ran down the stairs.

"Uncle Gargamel, what are you doing this late at night?" Denisa asked, still tired.

But as she came into the room, Denisa saw Gargamel on the floor, slithering like a snake. She gasped in fear!

"What are you doing on the floor?" she panicked.

"I don't know, but help me!" Gargamel yelled with fear.

Denisa saw a bucket of water nearby and dumped the fire underneath the cauldron out.

"Not the cauldron, the SSSSSShard in my hand!" hissed Gargamel "Get it off me!"

Now understanding what's happening, Denisa was looking for something to remove the Black Shard out of her 'uncle's' hand. Then, Azrael meowed to get her attention and she noticed... an axe!

"The axe? But, I'm too young and I don't wanna chop Uncle Gargy's hand off" protested Denisa.

"I don't care what happenssss, jusssst get it off me!" cried Gargamel.

Worried for Gargamel, Denisa picked up the axe and chopped the Black Shard in half.

Azrael and Monty peeked from behind a barrel and saw that Denisa had successfully chopped the Black Shard, ruining the spell.

"Oh, thank you" panted Gargamel, with a dazed expression on his face.

He gently rubbed his hand. Since Denisa chopped the Black Shard, it left a little scratch on the palm of his hand.

"Are you okay?" Denisa asked.

"Yes, I think so" answered Gargamel. "But, I have no idea why that happened."

Still unsure, Denisa looked carefully at the scratch.

It wasn't bleeding, but it looked like an ordinary paper cut than a open wound.

"Look" said Denisa, her voice filed with caution. "Just to be sure, let's clean it up."

"But, you're too little to do any..." said Gargamel, but he was cut off by the pain in his hand.

Azrael looked at Denisa and nodded his head as if to say _Yeah, better clean the cut._

For the reminder of the night, Denisa cleaned Gargamel's cut and helped him get to bed since he was starting to feel ill.

"You better stay with him, Azrael" she said.

The cat climbed on the bed and curled against Gargamel's chest, purring.

Denisa slept on the chair, but almost couldn't sleep until Monty flew down and gently smoothed her by letting her touch his feathers in her sleep.

But as everyone slept, the chopped Black Shard piece began to glow purple and began to change while the cut on Gargamel's hand slowly began to heal quickly.

 _ **To be continued...**_


	9. Strange Morning

_**Here comes an exciting chapter and this chapter might make you sick, so please DON'T EAT BEFORE OR WHILE YOU'RE READING!**_

 _ **Please feel free to leave a review. Enjoy!**_

* * *

The next morning, everything was back to normal.

Denisa cleaned up the mess from last night, with the help of both Azrael and Monty, and made breakfast again.

But this time, Gargamel didn't show up.

"Where is he?" Denisa asked.

Azrael meowed as if to say _I don't know_.

Denisa was worried either or not if the spell in Gargamel has caused him to sleep in.

"Monty, can you check on Uncle Gargy and make sure he's okay?" she asked Monty.

The vulture nodded and flew up to his master's room.

Gargamel was indeed sleeping in, but he was curled up in a ball as if he was cold, despite the warm blanket over him.

Monty flew over to Gargamel's bed and gently headbutted him, but the wizard didn't budge. The vulture did it again, but Gargamel still didn't budge.

Squawking angrily, Monty pulled Gargamel by the sleeve of his robe until he fell onto the ground.

"Ow!" Gargamel groaned. "Monty, do you know what time it is?"

"Breakfast time!" Denisa called.

Realizing that he slept in, Gargamel ran down the steps and sat down at the table.

"Good morning, Uncle Gargamel!" sang Denisa.

"Morning" moaned Gargamel as he rubbed his head.

Then, he stretched his arms and neck.

"So, Denisa, what's for breakfast?" he asked his godniece. "Any eggs? Earthworms? Lizards? Crabs? Snakes?"

Hearing this, Denisa cocked an eyebrow and turned towards Azrael.

The cat could only hold his breath and gag.

"Rodents? Birds?" continued Gargamel.

Monty screeched in horror and flew off.

"Uncle Gargamel, are you okay?" Denisa finally asked. "You sound wired."

Gargamel didn't answer her, his teeth started to chatter as if he was freezing to death.

"Are you cold, Uncle Gargy?" Denisa asked again.

"No" snapped Gargamel. "And don't call me Gargy!"

Azrael rolled his eyes and pulled a couple of eggs from Denisa's basket.

"Why, thank you, Azrael" said Gargamel. "I love a good meal in the morning."

Then, he cracked the egg a little and swallowed the insides until it was all gone.

Denisa and Azrael's eyes went wide in surprise.

"Why is he eating the egg raw?" whispered Denisa to Azrael.

Azrael shook his head and shrugged.

Suddenly, a loud knock interrupted them.

"Gargamel! Denisa!" said a voice.

"Papa Smurf!" said Gargamel and Denisa in unison.

Denisa answered the door.

"Good morning, Papa Smurf" greeted Denisa cheerfully.

"Good morning, my child" Papa Smurf greeted back.

"What is going on?" asked Gargamel.

Papa Smurf sighed nervously and whistled for Snappy.

"Show them, Snappy" he said firmly.

The ladybug did as she was told. Like a printer, she illustrated an image of the Black Shards and the Smurfs evacuating from their village.

"Oh, no" gasped Denisa.

"Oh, no is right" replied Papa Smurf. "And those Black Shards are about hit your lair next."

"M-My home?" gulped Gargamel.

"I'm afraid so. You two will have to pack and come with us. We are going to meet with the woman that I mentioned last night."

Denisa nodded and left to pack up her things.

Gargamel, however, was afraid. The castle was the only home he's ever known and now it's about to be destroyed by the Black Shards.

 _ **To be continued...**_

* * *

 _ **Strange morning for Gargamel, huh?**_

 _ **Throughout the upcoming chapters, try to keep your eyes peeled if you see any more signs of Gargamel's behavior changing.**_


	10. To Grandmother Sylph's We Go

_**In this chapter, there are some dark secrets that the Smurfs, Gargamel learn while they're in the Forbidden Forest, visiting SmurfWillow's old friend, Grandmother Sylph.**_

 ** _Grandmother Sylph is one of the few OC characters in the story._**

 ** _Enjoy!_**

* * *

When they reached the stone wall that eventually brought them to the Forbidden Forest, the Smurfs, Gargamel and Azrael were so nervous of the journey ahead of them.

It was a long walk to get to where they needed to go, but it was worth it... For the most part.

Everywhere they went, the entire forest was completely surrounded by large, sharp Black Shards from the enterance to the ruins of what used to be Smurfy Grove.

Papa Smurf and SmurfWillow, however, were not afraid of the Black Shards around them. They just fearlessly walked ahead of the group.

"Are we there yet, Papa Smurf?" whimpered Clumsy.

"No" said Papa Smurf.

 _Later when they reached the river._

"How far is it?" complained Gargamel.

"Not far" snapped SmurfStorm.

"My feet are killing me" said Denisa.

"I feel the same" admitted Hefty. "But, we're not giving up."

 _Then, when they reached the homes of the dragonflies._

"Are we there yet?" asked Denisa, politely.

"Yes" said Gargamel.

"Really?" whimpered Clumsy.

"NO, YOU IDIOT! WE'RE NOT THERE YET!"

"Oh, smooth move, Clumsy" sneered SmurfStorm.

"That's enough, both of you!" said Papa Smurf.

 _Finally when it was close to late afternoon, the group have finally reached their destination, tried from the trip._

"Alright, everyone" announced SmurfWillow. "We're finally here."

They have reached a small, little cottage covered in beautiful flowers and vines.

"Wow!" Smurfette gasped in awe.

"This is the home of my old friend, Grandmother Sylph" said SmurfWillow. "She has been a friend to all of Smurfy Grove when I first became the leader."

Suddenly, the door slowly creaked open and out came Grandmother Sylph.

Sylph was a beautiful Indian witch who was old as Homnibus, but she looked sixty rather than a thousand years old.

"Is that you, SmurfWillow?" she asked in a soft, but thick Indian accent.

"Grandmama Sylph, we need your help" said SmurfWillow.

"Yes, I will help you, my friend. But, not going to be here for long."

"Not for long? Why?" SmurfLily asked, nervously.

"I'm sorry, everyone" apologized Grandmother Sylph. "I'm dying."

Hearing this, the Smurfs gasped in shock.

* * *

Inside the cottage, Grandmother Sylph was in her bed, carefully examining the Black Shard that the Smurfs have found in their village.

Even though her time was almost up, she still had very little of magic left inside her.

"What do you think of it?" asked Papa Smurf.

Sighing, Grandmother Sylph knew that her visitors must know the dark truth of what they're up against.

"The Black Shards are not to be tampered with" Grandmother Sylph said slowly.

Using her magic, a pile of dandelion seeds began to float in the air and created visions.

"These are the work of dark magic" she continued.

"It's not just the unstoppable, uncontrollable spreading and growing. The ones responsible for this mess are the wicked dwarf Zherlon Sven and his witch assistants."

The Smurfs were confused and started to ask questions.

"Who is Zherlon Sven? Is he dangerous? I've never heard of him. What does he want with the Black Shards?"

Denisa started to panic as well, but Azrael jumped into her arms and tried to help her calm down.

Then, Grandmother Sylph showed more visions of the Black Shards.

"Once cast on a night of an eclipse, the spell can never be stopped by man made weapons such as axes, hammers, cannons and swords" said Grandmother Sylph.

"If anyone touches the Black Shards other than the wizard or witch who created the spell, they will become greatly cursed."

The Smurfs gasped and quickly backed away in fear.

Hearing this, Gargamel's eyes widen in fear and he gulped, almost like they are ready to start panicking.

 _Does this whole curse thing have to do with my accident with the Shard I used last night?_ he asked himself, nervously.

"Please, Grandmother Sylph" begged SmurfWillow. "There must be a solution to the Black Shards or anyone who touches them."

"There is one for the Black Shards" replied Grandmother Sylph.

"Over at my table is a bag of Golden Leaf Flowers."

Denisa went over to her table and picked up a large bag that contains small chestnut-like seeds.

"To prevent the Black Shards from spreading" she said.

"Is to use the pixie dust inside a rare and magical flower called the Golden Leaf Flower planted before three moons. It will put an end to the danger you're in."

"And the people who might be cursed?" asked Smurfette.

A long silence followed.

Grandmother Sylph paused, hearing what the little Smurf has asked her. Then, she finally spoke in a dark voice.

"My child, the people with the curse are either turned to stone if their heart is hard or turned into an animal based on a spell they cast with a Black Shard."

Gargamel was worried, but he brushed it aside and acted as if he wasn't worried about the cursed people.

"No one knows how to reverse the curse" Grandmother Sylph said, sadly. "But, here is a clue."

With the last of her strength, Grandmother Sylph magically summoned water from a basin, which then formed into a shape of a droplet, and then laid down on her bed.

"I wish we could do something for you, Grandmama Sylph" sobbed SmurfBlossom.

"There's nothing you can do, my dear" said the Indian with her dying breath. "You Smurfs will always be my friend."

And then, Grandmother Sylph vanished into thin air.

The girl Smurfs gasped to see their friend have left their lives. It was too much, that SmurfBlossom started to cry and hug SmurfWillow tightly.

The other Smurfs, Gargamel and Denisa stared at the floating water droplet.

"Amazing" said Papa Smurf.

"But, what is it?" asked Gargamel.

"It looks like a drop of water."

"What kind of water, Papa Smurf?" whimpered Clumsy. "Is it a river? A flood? I'M FREAKING OUT, GUYS!"

"No, no, Clumsy" said Smurfette, in a calm voice. "It's a water drop from rain, or maybe even a tear."

Brainy had Snappy take frames of the water droplet before it splashed onto the ground.

"We'll keep track of any clues that appear in our path" Papa Smurf assured.

Afterwards, the Smurfs, Gargamel and Denisa left the cottage, expect the girl Smurfs, who decided to stay for a while to mourn Grandmother Sylph as she was the only human friend they ever had.

"You think they're gonna be okay?" asked Denisa.

"It's okay, Denny" said Hefty. "They can handle themselves."

"Denny. I like that."

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	11. He Was Just Like You

_**Now that I have gotten the role of the Wicked Witch of the West in my town's local theater production of The Wizard of Oz, I'm going to be very super busy with practice and the rehearsals that I may not be able to work on chapters, but I will try to do more as soon as possible.**_

* * *

Since Smurf Village was in the path of the Black Shards and Gargamel's hovel could be next, the Smurfs, Gargamel and Denisa had to camp out near a cave.

That afternoon, Denisa played with the Smurfs while Gargamel and Azrael were distracted with their argument on "what to have for supper" and she didn't mind that a bit.

"I'm so happy that you can play with us, Denisa" sighed SmurfLily.

"Playing with you guys is better than to sit around all day." admitted Denisa.

"Yes, Gargamel can be frustrating" said Papa Smurf. "But, the truth is he wasn't always like this, Denisa. He was just like you."

Denisa was confused. How can my uncle be just like me?

Papa Smurf could see where Denisa's curiosity would mean to tell her the truth.

Having to know the truth long before, Smurfette nodded her head to Papa Smurf, urging him to tell Denisa.

"A long time ago before you even born" started Papa Smurf.

"Gargamel was a happy, little boy who was mistreated by his father and bullied by his peers at wizard school, but was very much loved by his mother. It wasn't until he was a young man when he first met us and tried to use six of us to make gold."

 _Gold?_ thought Denisa. _Why would he use the Smurfs for gold? They're so cute!_

"We freed ourselves and Gargamel swore he would get us one day" Papa Smurf continued.

"One day, the Smurfs and I was out gathering smurfberries and that's when we heard screeching, shouting. We went over where the wizard school was and we found Gargamel fighting with a man."

Gasping, Denisa had come to believe her uncle is a murderer.

"But, he didn't kill the man" assured Smurfette. "The man was a cat kidnapper."

"The kidnapper wanted to harm Azrael, who was outside waiting for Gargamel for school to be over" added Hefty.

"So what happened?" asked Denisa.

The Smurfs weren't sure how to explain it to her, but Papa Smurf was sure that Denisa was old enough to understand.

"Azrael tried to fight his kidnapper, but he was not able to" he said.

"The poor cat was meowing so loud that Gargamel came out and he got mad and fought the cat thief. The fight was momentarily stopped by the headmaster, who pulled Gargamel out of danger."

Denisa was unsure how to picture her "uncle" as a hero when he hates the Smurfs. Papa Smurf continued his story.

"But when the cat thief went to attack him, Gargamel disarmed him and used a sleeping spell he studied on to put the man to temporarily sleep. Though he saved his cat friend, it caused him to flunk wizard school. Because of that, he lost the trust of his fellow wizards and his mother."

Now having to hear the full story, Denisa was completely heartbroken, tears in her eyes.

"And now, the only friends he has are Azrael and the vulture" Clumsy said, sadly.

 _All this time, why didn't he say anything?_ Denisa asked to herself.

The Smurfs sighed sadly and went off to play, but Denisa remained. Papa Smurf approached her.

"I'm sorry my uncle hates you guys" she said, sadly.

"Some people are born into a life of cruelty and Gargamel wants power to prove himself worthy" replied Papa Smurf. "But, there are times that I pity him in situations where he is not himself or if he's in danger."

All Denisa could do was sigh sadly. She felt sorry for Gargamel deep down, but she hated him for the things he called her.

"Looks like we Smurfs aren't the only ones" said Papa Smurf, understanding Denisa's conflicted feeling. "Just remember, Denisa. Even though he won't admit it right off, Gargamel does love you."

"He doesn't love me" sighed Denisa. "All he ever said to me was that I was a pain and a muggle."

Papa Smurf knew that Denisa is struggling with her mother sick, so he left her alone to think.

* * *

Meanwhile at Gargamel's hovel, Monty was ready to find Gargamel and Azrael, but then he noticed that there were muddy mongoose tracks coming from the bridge.

Monty squawked confusingly.

It wasn't raining last night, but it looked like whatever it was, it swam through the river and it was dripping wet.

He flew over to the bridge and sniffed the footprints.

 _Hmm..._ thought Monty. _These paw prints smell like the master's smelly feet._

The vulture carefully followed the paw prints to the hovel, but it seems like it just stops just there.

Shaking his head, Monty flew off into the distance.

* * *

Back in the forest, it was nightfall and the Smurfs and Denisa returned to the camp where Gargamel and Azrael found firewood and dinner: fruit from the river and a nice, plump chicken.

Azrael ate some piranha from the Swamp of No Return while he and Gargamel were searching for food.

The Smurfs had some of the remaining smurfberries in their bag.

"Hmm, this is good" Denisa said. "I haven't had good food in a while."

"That's good" smiled SmurfWillow.

"Back at my mother's, we were served by servants. I guess this might be the only time that I dine this way."

Some of the Smurfs were upset by the fact that Denisa will be returning home to her mother once she's better. But, Hefty decided to lighten the subject.

"You know, Denny" he said. "Maybe if you want once everything is back to normal, you can visit us anytime you like. We can make do whatever kind of fun we like, play smurf ball, go smurf boarding..."

"Play dress up" added SmurfBlossom.

"You know you name it."

Denisa laughed and smiled brightly.

"I'd like that" she said.

Gargamel, however, wasn't in the mood in talking.

In his mind, he was unsure of Denisa playing with the Smurfs with him being their enemy. Yet, maybe Denisa isn't so bad after all. Then, he got up and placed Azrael in Denisa's arms.

"Hey, Gargamel, where are you going?" asked Clumsy.

"To get more firewood" moaned Gargamel.

To the Smurfs' and Denisa's surprise, Gargamel sadly walked farther into the forest, without Azrael.

"But, we already have firewood" complained Grouchy.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_

 _ **Sad backstory isn't it?**_

 _ **Let's hope that Gargamel and Denisa will learn to get along.**_


	12. A Wild Mongoose Chase

_**Alright, as of now, the rating has changed from K+ to T.**_

* * *

Everyone was sitting by the fire, but Gargamel has been gone for a very long time.

"Where is he?" asked SmurfLily.

"I don't know" answered Hefty.

"He's been gone for exactly three minutes..." said Brainy.

Then, Denisa started to yawn.

"...and it's past Denisa's bedtime."

"But, I'm not sleepy" moaned Denisa, trying to resist from falling asleep.

"Yes, you are, my child" replied SmurfWillow.

"No, I'm not."

Not wanting to fight with her friends, Denisa followed all of the Smurfs into the mouth of the cave.

Then, Papa Smurf approached Azrael.

"Azrael" he whispered to the cat.

"If Gargamel shows up or if you see any sign of Black Shards approaching, let me know."

Azrael meowed understandingly and nodded his head, slowly.

"Goodnight, Azrael."

As soon as the Smurfs and Denisa were fast asleep, Azrael stood at the cave's entrance like a vicious guard dog.

 _Sure, Gargamel and I hate Smurfs_ Azrael thought to himself. _But, they need our help._ _ **We**_ _need their help._

For most of the night, Azrael stood at the cave, but he fell asleep two minutes later.

However, he was rudely awaken by a painful bite on his tail.

"RERROOOWWW!" screeched the cat.

Papa Smurf, Smurfette, Hefty, Brainy and SmurfStorm rushed over to the cave's opening, armed with weapons, bows and arrows.

"Wait, wait, wait!" cried Smurfette. "It's only Monty!"

The vulture raised his head and started to screech wildly.

"Whoa, easy, boy, easy" cooed Hefty. "What's wrong?"

Monty started to act out what he saw back at Gargamel's home, Papa Smurf could understand what the vulture was trying to say.

"You were about to come find Gargamel and Azrael..." he translated. "Then, you noticed some footprints covered in mud."

"Uh-huh" squawked Monty, before continuing his story.

"You followed the footprints to the castle, but it just stops at the door?" asked Hefty.

The vulture nodded his head and tried to mimic a wolf howl.

"Wow! That's quite a howl, bird" said Brainy, sarcastically.

But, Papa Smurf knew it wasn't Monty making the howling.

"Wait!" shouted SmurfStorm. "You don't think-"

She was interrupted by a loud twig snap.

"What was that?"

Azrael hissed. Monty frowned.

"Is it a wolf?" asked Brainy nervously.

"Shhh, quiet" whispered Hefty.

There was only silence, luckily Denisa and most of the Smurfettes were fast asleep and they couldn't hear anything.

Suddenly, something quickly entered the cave, screaming!

"Is that a... mongoose?" asked Smurfette, having to be awoken to the loud animal's noise, along with the other Smurfettes.

"That's strange" frowned Papa Smurf. "Those kind of animals can only be found in the mainlands of Africa."

The mongoose just kept on running without stopping.

"What the..." said a frightened Brainy.

"Why is that mongoose running?" asked SmurfWillow. "And what is it running away from?"

The Smurfs slowly approached the cave's opening, gripping their weapons in their hands, tightly.

But before they could turn in for the night, the Smurfs screamed as a large white wolf paw jumped in front of them.

"THE WOLF!"

SmurfStorm shot an arrow at the wolf, but it didn't help.

With one swipe, the wolf threw the Smurfs out of its way and went after the mongoose.

"NO!" cried the Smurfs.

"It's gonna kill Denisa and the mongoose!" shouted Smurfette.

"After that wolf!" ordered Papa Smurf.

Hefty, Papa Smurf and SmurfWillow jumped onto Azrael while the Smurfettes jumped onto Monty's back. They ran after the hungry wolf.

Denisa was sleeping peacefully with one of her dollies under her arms.

The wolf slowly and softly approached Denisa, its teeth baring and hunger in its eyes.

The savage animal crouched down, ready to pounce on the little girl.

However, a small claw slashed the wolf's face, drawing blood.

Azrael meowed angrily at the wolf and then both he and Monty tackled the beast to the ground, engaging a savage combat.

The Smurfs carefully checked to make sure Denisa was alright.

"She's okay" sighed Smurfette.

Despite a brief moment of relief for his new friend, Hefty started to encourage Azrael and Monty.

"Get 'em, Azrael, Monty!" he cheered. "Bite 'em in the head!"

As the fight against the wolf continued, the mongoose ran off in such a hurry that it didn't seem to have a hint of gratefulness for the Smurfs and the animals for helping it or without even saying goodbye.

However, the wolf went after the mongoose out of the cave.

"Oh, no!" cried Brainy. "They're going into the forest!"

"Oh, my! I hope they get back here safe" said Papa Smurf, his voice almost trembling with fear.

Out in the forest, the wolf was trying to catch its midnight lunch.

It zipped past the Black Shards and was trying to get Azrael off to its back. But, Monty swooped down and rescued the cat before he could be thrown off.

Azrael meowed as if to say thank you and quickly gave Monty a quick high five with his back paw.

Monty squawked in pain and stumbled, but he managed to get back on course, following the wolf down a hole and into the belly of the underground.

The wolf was so desperate to lose the cat and vulture, but it thought that the ground was the worse places it could be chased in.

But, Azrael wasn't going to give up that easily.

The vulture threw rocks and dirt, but the wolf was too quick for them.

Angry, Azrael jumped off of Monty and went after the beast.

Monty stopped in his tracks and watched as his friend was chasing after the vicious beast that could possibly kill him.

 _Be careful, my friend_ thought the vulture, before returning to the surface.

The cat was getting closer to his target as the wolf leaped up towards the surface.

Growling, Azrael jumped after the wolf.

The chase continued through a large mine filled with abused animals, Azrael and the wolf bumped into carts and then, across a log bridge over a large, misty waterfall.

Finally, Azrael caught up with the wolf and bit it, causing it to lose balance on the log and into the water unconscious, sending it down a path of rocks and all the way down the waterfall.

Azrael laughed in triumph and blew a long raspberry towards the water below as if to say "serves you right."

But before he could leave, he slipped into a small calm, pool.

He swam towards the rocks, tired and out of breath.

* * *

The next morning, Azrael swam towards shore.

 _I'd better get Gargamel and return to camp_ was the first thing that came to Azrael's mind.

As he slowly climbed out of the water, Azrael suddenly felt two human feet blocking his path.

The cat slowly looked up and saw Gargamel, who had a large, long leaf for a towl on his lower half of his nude body and holding his clothes in one arm.

"Uh-oh" Azrael moaned in cat language.

"Well..." frowned the wizard. "I know one cat who not only disturbed my bath, but has got some explaining to do."

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	13. Trapped!

_**I hope you are prepared, because in this chapter, the story takes a BIG turn.**_

* * *

Throughout the entire day, the Smurfs were trying to convince Gargamel that Azrael and Monty were chasing the wolf last night, not trying to drown the wizard.

"He was only trying to help, Gargamel" cried Smurfette.

"More like trying to help me die in my soothing bath in the river!" snapped the wizard.

"There is no way Azrael could have done that!" Hefty said.

Azrael shook his head and meowed angrily at his master, trying to tell the truth.

"What's gotten into, Azrael?!" Gargamel shouted.

"You can't just let me die in the river! I promised I wouldn't let anything happen to you! Ever!"

Papa Smurf knew he had to butt in this argument just this once.

"Ahem, Gargamel" the old Smurf said. "You didn't just promise yourself to protect Azrael, but to _understand_ him too."

"Yes, yes, I know. But right now, it's complicated!" Gargamel replied.

"With these Black Shards popping from the ground, I can't have Azrael or Monty go running off all the time when this nightmare happens!"

Monty was distracted, however.

He noticed that the mongoose from last night was at the front of the cave.

The mongoose was a beautiful animal, unlike anyone has ever seen. He had light brown that it looked like he was actually orange and large eyes that were red as rubies on slippers.

The small animal motioned Monty to follow him.

Of course, Monty didn't hesitate and flew pass the Smurfs and Gargamel.

"Ah! You see? Monty's doing it again!" cried Gargamel.

"No, look!" Hefty said, pointing at the mongoose.

"That's the same mongoose from last night!" yelped Clumsy.

Azrael sprung up to his feet and followed Monty.

"No, no, Azrael!" Gargamel barked. "Get back here!"

It was too late, Azrael had left the cave, with Papa Smurf, Smurfette, Brainy, Clumsy and Hefty on his back.

The wizard growled in annoyance and was about go after his pets, but he realized something.

"DENISA!" he gasped.

"It's alright" said SmurfWillow softly. "The girls and I will watch over her."

SmurfLily, SmurfBlossom and SmurfStorm were already checking on Denisa with the other Smurfettes sleeping close to her.

With an understanding nod, Gargamel ran out of the cave.

Monty and Azrael followed the mongoose until he brought them inside the mine where Azrael had chased the wolf.

The Smurfs gasped at the sight of the animals laying on the ground, either tired or dead.

"Oh, what's happened to them, Papa Smurf?" whimpered Smurfette.

"I don't know" replied the old smurf. "But, something tells me that they were forced to work in this mine."

Clumsy gulped and covered his eyes with his cap.

"T-T-Tell me when it's over, you g-g-g-guys" he stuttered.

"AZRAEL! MONTY!" Gargamel's voice echoed from outside the mine.

Once Gargamel entered, he was still very angry at his "loyal" pets.

"You two are going to be grounded once we get home!" snarled the wizard. "How is this sneaky-sneak behavior gonna help us discover the secrets of the Black Sh...ards"

Then, Gargamel saw what Azrael and Monty were staring at.

"Oh, dear."

The mongoose chattered and pointed at a wall filled with drawings, almost like a caveman painting.

Papa Smurf knew what the mongoose was trying to tell them.

"This place is filled with animals who were once human" he said. "Whoever cursed these people has brainwashed them. When the moon rises, they go under a painful and hideous transformation into these poor animals on the ground."

Gargamel gulped.

 _I'm glad Denisa isn't here to see this_ he thought to himself.

"And this monster behind this" continued Papa Smurf. "Is forcing the innocent lives to work in this mine for the Black Shards to continue to grow."

Smurfette was frightened, but Hefty held her in his arms.

Brainy started having Snappy take "photos" of the entire mine.

"Papa Smurf, I wanna go home!" screamed Clumsy. "I'M FREAKING OUT!"

But before anyone could take a step, the doors slammed shut and Black Shards emerged from the ground.

It trapped the Smurfs and Gargamel inside!

Azrael jumped on Gargamel's head for protection.

* * *

Meanwhile, Denisa and the other Smurfettes were taking a stroll through the forest.

"Do you think Uncle Gargy and the others would return?" Denisa asked SmurfWillow.

"I'm sure they are fine" SmurfWllow assured.

But then, SmurfBlossom screamed.

"GIRLS! COME OVER HERE! QUICK!"

Denisa quickly picked up SmurfWillow and many of the Smurfettes she could grab and ran off, with the remaining Smurfettes following her.

Eventually, they found SmurfBlossom at the entrance to a destroyed village.

"Oh, no" whispered Denisa.

Suddenly, the Smurfettes jumped at the sound of a loud noise.

The Smurfettes cautiously walked into the village, where everything was ruined by the Black Shards and innocent lives were taken.

"The Black Shards were here too" cooed SmurfLily.

It wasn't until Denisa went inside a small cottage and examined a portrait of a once happy and proud family.

She sighed sadly and felt something under her foot.

Confused, Denisa stepped away and found a beautiful necklace with pearls and a large stone shaped like a water drop.

It reminded her of her mother.

Denisa felt her eyes watering and her face turned red.

Her mother was the only family she has. But, she was worried that if her mother doesn't recover from her illness, she would feel alone.

Then, SmurfLily touched Denisa's leg and nodded to the girl as if to say everything will be alright.

Denisa sniffled and hugged SmurfLily tightly, breaking down in tears.

"I'm sorry about your mother being sick" whispered SmurfLily.

SmurfWillow and the other Smurfettes saw this.

"Oh, I can't bare to see Denny cry" sobbed SmurfMelody.

"It's too HEARTBREAKING!" wailed SmurfBlossom.

SmurfMelody and SmurfBlossom joined SmurfLily, hugging Denisa tightly as they all cried.

"There, there" cooed SmurfWillow.

"I know it's hard, but we can't let tragic things like this get in the way. We have to move on."

"I agree" said SmurfStorm.

"How come you're not crying, Stormy?" sniffled Denisa.

"STORMY CRIES ON THE INSIDE, DENNY!" bellowed SmurfBlossom.

All the other Smurfettes stared at SmurfStorm, who crossed her legs in guilt.

"It's sad, but true" admitted SmurfStorm.

The Smurfettes led Denisa back to the cave and they spent the rest of the day, comforting each other.

* * *

Back at the mine, almost sundown...

The Smurfs were frightened as the Black Shards in front of them suddenly lowered themselves down to reveal a beautiful but devious green skinned Sphynx cat. Her name was Aglæca.

"Is that a... cat?" asked Clumsy.

"That looks _nothing_ like a cat!" yelled Gargamel. "It doesn't even have _fur_!"

"But, why is her skin green?" wondered Smurfette.

Azrael jumped off from Gargamel's head and approached Aglæca.

He mewed to her as if to question what she wanted from the Smurfs or his master.

"How about we start with you giving up your master?" said the green cat in a cold voice.

The Smurfs gasped in fear.

"But why?" asked Smurfette.

"Follow me..." Aglæca hissed.

* * *

 ** _Oh, no! The Smurfs and Gargamel have walked into a trap by a new OC villain,_** _ **Aglæca, a green skinned Sphynx cat. What do you think will happen next?**_

 _ **To be continued...**_


	14. Transformation

_**You are about to witness a very nasty surprise!**_

 ** _WARNING: There is a horrifying transformation scene in this chapter with minor but intense details. But if you are uncomfortable, either skip or DON'T READ THIS PART AT ALL!_**

* * *

Aglæca brought the Smurfs and Gargamel to a fresh, green hill filled with Black Shards.

"The mongoose came this way?" asked Clumsy.

"No" sneered Aglæca. "But someone was here before and they slipped into the river."

Azrael noticed snake tracks. He sniffed them, and slowly followed it.

"You don't think someone tried to drown me?" Gargamel rudely asked.

"WILL YOU STOP WITH THE DROWNING?!" screamed Papa Smurf.

Gargamel rolled his eyes in annoyance, and then began to scratch his neck.

"Are you okay?" Hefty frowned.

"Oh, I'm okay" replied the wizard.

The Smurfs are confused as they followed the snake tracks.

Azrael and Monty's eyes suddenly widened to see that the snake tracks are slowly reverting to _human_ footprints.

Hefty and Smurfette gasped in surprise.

"Look at these tracks!" Hefty said.

"These tracks must belong to a shape-shifter or an Animagus" concluded Brainy.

Papa Smurf carefully examined the footprints.

"It's not a shape-shifter or an Animagus" he said. "It's some sort of curse."

* * *

When they got to the waterfalls, Gargamel inhaled the fresh air and unconsciously flicked his tongue.

"Uh, Gargamel" whimpered Clumsy. "I think you just flicked your tongue."

"No, I didn't flick my tongue" growled Gargamel.

"Actually, you did" concluded Brainy, rudely. "When you breathed in the air, you also flicked your tongue."

"No! I didn't! Stop accusing me!"

Aglæca has had enough, her teeth baring. She's ready for the kill.

"WILL YOU STOP THAT BICKERING OF YOURS!" she hissed towards Gargamel and Brainy.

But then, Papa Smurf realized something was up with this green cat.

"Wait a minute" he said. "What is going on? Are you _really_ trying to show us the truth, or are you planning to trap us?"

That is when the green skinned cat grinned evilly and whistled loudly.

Spears surrounded the Smurfs and Gargamel, vicious tree-like warriors appeared and growled savagely.

And then finally, a figure appeared from behind the waterfall.

"Evening" said the creature in a soft, but very attractive voice.

The Smurfs frowned, not liking who this mysterious stranger is.

"Hello yourself" snapped Gargamel.

"Who are you and what do you want?" shouted Papa Smurf, approaching the river.

The figure emerged from the waterfall.

Long, flowing winter white hair, dark blood red top with a black skirt underneath a floor sweeping midnight blue robes revealing an elegant looking woman. She was the same age as Gargamel, yet she appeared much younger.

"Who the Smurf is she?" Hefty asked, nervously.

Clumsy gasped and hid behind Monty.

Azrael hissed and stood in front of Gargamel, determined to protect his master and best friend.

"Gesla" growled Gargamel.

"Gargamel" smiled Gelsa devilishly.

She approached the wizard, before she started flirt with him.

"I thought I'd find you homeless after my Black Shards were created by my dwarf assistant. How about a little mouth to mouth romance?"

But, Gargamel slapped Gelsa's hand that was touching his cheek.

"DON'T TOUCH ME, YOU SICK, TWISTED LOW LIFE TRAITOR!" he shouted angrily.

Smurfette was shocked to hear Gargamel curse at a woman that he knew.

"You know her?" she asked. "Who is she?!"

"She was in wizard school and when I was beginning to chase you Smurfs, she started to harass me and told me that I was a nobody."

Gelsa sneered at the wizard.

"That's because you _are_!" she said.

"What?!"

"That's right. Like you said months ago, Gargamel... No matter how hard you try, you can't escape from your destiny."

Gargamel was offended by Gelsa's words.

"How long has she been stalking you?" asked Brainy.

"Oh, shut up, Brainy!" shouted Papa Smurf, Smurfette, Hefty and Clumsy in unison.

Brainy gulped nervously and backed away.

"What do you want, Gelsa?" frowned Papa Smurf.

"What do you think I want?" Gelsa smiled evilly. "The Stone of Sultry Vapor."

"THE STONE OF SULTRY VAPOR?!" screamed the Smurfs.

Gargamel and Azrael looked at each other with worried looks on their faces.

"Oh, no" they gulped nervously.

"With the Stone in my hands and my dark magic controlling the rain..." chuckled Gelsa. "I will rise every single Black Shard from the ground and crush the world!"

"No. You won't." said an angry voice.

A beautiful swan appeared.

Suddenly, it morphed into an woman. She was very identical, but she wasn't like Gelsa.

She had long, curly red hair and lips green as spring. Her dress looked like it was made from overly large flowers and over beautiful plants.

"You shall not harm my friends or my people..." she said. "In anyway."

Gelsa was enraged.

"So, you have returned home from the New World, Anelia" she snarled viciously. "What else do you want, you who I called sister?"

"There is nothing you can ever give me, Gelsa" answered Anelia, calmly. "Your actions caused Gargamel to flunk wizard school. And I can't let you harm the people I love. Especially turning my best friend into a giant boa constrictor."

The Smurfs were confused.

"Who? Who is the boa?" asked Smufette.

Anelia sighed sadly. She knew that they had the right to know the truth.

"The boa is... Gargamel."

Azrael, Monty and the Smurfs gasped in shock!

"What?" asked a offended Gargamel. "There is no way I could be a snake, madam."

But, Gelsa pinned Gargamel to a tree, scaring Anelia.

"Oh, yes. You slithered into your home in the forest and stole a piece of my dark magic to destroy the Smurfs!"

"Who, me?" mocked Gargamel.

"Well, your plan backfired! I will not tolerate some whiffle-whaffle of a zounderkite wizard using my dark magic for their own personal purpose! You got that?"

But, Anelia tried to break up the tense confrontation.

"Alright... I'm sure Gargamel isn't interested in this freakish nightmare" sang out the kind witch. "So... I'm going to bring him and the Smurfs to my home to where the sunbeams shine. Adieu."

Anelia picked up the Smurfs and walked off. But as Gargamel, Azrael and Monty attempted to follow her...

"You're not going anywhere" smirked Gelsa.

Her eyes wide, Anelia stopped and noticed that one of the spears on the ground has pinned the bottom of Gargamel's robe.

Gargamel didn't realize this until he went flying back to where he was before.

Papa Smurf knew this wasn't going to end well.

"Not until I show you what happens when you toy with my magic" continued Gelsa.

"Oh, Papa Smurf, what are we gonna do?" asked Smurfette.

But before Papa Smurf can answer, the moon rose over the Smurfs.

Gelsa cackled as she magically made the spears disappear.

"You shall turn into the animal as you were always sneaky" she said in an ominous voice.

"But... You will never be human again unless I lose my power. No one could love a heartless wizard. For if you touch the Black Shards once more, YOU WILL DIE!"

The moonlight shined on Gargamel.

"Oh, my!" cried the Smurfs.

"GARGAMEL, NO!" screamed Anelia.

The wizard groaned in pain, gripping his head in pain!

"What is happening?" he cried in agony.

His skin became horrible and scaly, fangs came from the top and bottom of his mouth.

Azrael and Monty watched helplessly in horror as Gargamel stumbled to the ground on his hands and feet, straining in pain.

Then, the wizard yelled as his face lengthened into a reptilian shape. He tried to touch his face, but his hands and arms started to retract into his body.

"No, no, no! Thisss can't be happening!" sobbed Gargamel, his forked tongue sticking out.

Papa Smurf, Hefty and Brainy were horrified of what's happening, holding Smurfette and Clumsy close to them.

Then, Gargamel's shoes fell off his feet as coils slowly began to rip out from the bottom of his leggings and his robe began to rip!

Anelia was frightened of the transformation, that she got angry and went after Gelsa, only to be held back by the tree warriors.

"You can't do this!" Anelia snapped at Gelsa. "Undo the pain you place upon him!"

But, Gisela had a demonic smile.

Gargamel's legs painfully fused together into a snake tail and his body lengthens into a long boa!

"Oh, my! The transformation is complete!" cried Papa Smurf.

At that moment, Gargamel's head lifted.

He had transformed into a boa! Only his only tooth and his black hair remained.

"Oh, Gargamel" cooed Anelia sadly.

The now boa Gargamel was curious of his surroundings, wondering what just happened.

Gelsa and the tree warriors laughed at the boa.

"Kill him!" the witch shouted.

The trees tried to stomp on Gargamel, but Anelia snapped her fingers and Gargamel vanished!

"Go, Gelsa" Anelia scolded. "You have caused enough suffering."

"Ha!" scoffed the evil witch. "You don't stand a chance against me, the evilest witch in all of the land!"

With the swipe of her hand, all of the tree warriors returned to their normal state and Gelsa vanished into thin air.

Azrael was very angry, then a green tail flicked his face.

"Bye bye, sweetie pie" chuckled Aglæca, before leaving.

But, the ginger cat blew a raspberry as if to say "good riddance."

"I hope Gargamel is okay" said Papa Smurf.

"Uh, where is he anyway?" asked Clumsy.

Anelia gently touched Papa Smurf and then pointed towards a hole in the ground.

Papa Smurf, Smurfette and Azrael peeked their heads into the dark hole.

"Gargamel!" called Papa Smurf. "You can come out now!"

The boa slithered out of the hole and approached the Smurfs.

"P-P-Papa Smurf! You must help me" Gargamel cried out in fear.

Then, he cupped his mouth.

"I don't believe it, I can still talk. But, how?"

Anelia placed her hands under Gargamel's chin.

"That is because Gelsa only changed your appearance, not who you are on the inside" she assured him. "You are able to control yourself. But, there will be times when you're in this form, your tongue will slip."

Gargamel was relieved that Anelia was there, then he felt fur against his skin.

It was Azrael, rubbing against him almost meowing in sorrow.

Sad, Gargamel carefully coiled his cat and held him, giving him a gentle hug.

"I'm sorry, Azrael" he sobbed. "So sorry."

It was only then, Papa Smurf took Anelia aside.

"Is there anyway you can reverse Gelsa's fearful curse on Gargamel?" asked the old Smurf.

"I'm sorry, Papa Smurf, sir" replied the good witch. "My sister's magic is far too powerful, but I certainly help in anyway."

Then, she had an idea.

"Have one of your little Smurfs grab a flower on that tree near the riverbank and I can use it to _alternate_ the curse."

Papa Smurf had ordered Smurfette and Hefty to fetch the flower on the riverbank tree.

After a while, Gargamel slithered to Anelia, who held the flower and briefly dipped it in the river. The flower then began to glow a bright yellow. Then, Anelia summoned the spell.

"Poor wizard, so misunderstood and lost, if this suffering should cause you great pain, caused by the woman who I called sister who poisoned your brain... a ray of hope there still maybe in this, the blessing I give from me to thee. By night one way, you shall retain this form once under moonlight. But by day another, you'll be human once more by daylight. Until you find someone who loves you for who you are, the human form will dissolve under the skin of snake, when your true heart reveals the spell shall break."

The water from the flower poured on Gargamel's head, making his coils shake.

"But... Will Gargamel still die if he were to touch the Black Shards again?" asked Smurfette.

"I'm afraid so, my dear child" answered Anelia. "He must avoid the Shards, they are _very_ dangerous."

A long silence followed.

The Smurfs were worried about Gargamel's fate. Sure, they hate him, but they would never in their lives that their enemy could die a death so frightening.

"Come with me" said Anelia. "I will take you to my home past the riverbend. And first thing tomorrow, we will find the other Smurfs and your godniece."

The Smurfs followed the good witch as they went downhill.

Gargamel was unsure, but Azrael and Monty urged him to follow Anelia.

"You're right" he said to his pets. "Anelia is a friend of mine, she wouldn't let anything happen to me."

The trio went downhill to catch up with the Smurfs and Anelia.

* * *

 ** _Gargamel is cursed and has turned into a boa! What will happen next? How will Denisa handle this?_**

 ** _To be continued..._**

 ** _To those who thought I borrowed lines from other movies, I didn't and I never will, so please DON'T accuse me or point out anything! I know what I'm doing. I'm unleashing the magic of my own imagination._**


	15. Reunion

_**If you think Gargamel's transformation is horrible, wait until you see what heartwarming event might surprise you in this chapter.**_

 _ **I almost forgot in the previous chapter that both Anelia and Gelsa are OC characters.**_

* * *

The next morning in Anelia's home, the Smurfs entered the room and watched as the boa Gargamel slowly morphed back into human form.

Because the transformation ripped his leggings and he shrunk in his robe, Gargamel was butt naked as a newborn, but the Smurfs only saw him from the back.

"I still can't believe that Anelia would do anything to help Gargamel" said Brainy.

"Well, Anelia is Gargamel's old childhood sweetheart" replied Papa Smurf. "And she told me last night that when they have gone their separate ways, she would always keep him in her heart."

Feeling sorry for the wizard, Hefty pushed Gargamel's legs that were dangling from the side of the bed.

Smurfette had trouble pulling the blanket over Gargamel's body, but Azrael pitched in to help.

"Thanks" she sighed, grateful for Azrael's help.

And then, Papa Smurf got close to Gargamel's ear.

"You're going to be alright, Gargamel" he whispered. "I promise."

Azrael meowed nervously as Papa Smurf, Smurfette, Hefty, Clumsy and Brainy climbed onto Monty's back.

"We'll be back, Azrael" assured Hefty.

"Yeah, we're going to find Denisa" added Smurfette.

And then, Monty flew off with the Smurfs on his back.

Once they were gone, Gargamel woke up with a loud yawn.

He had slept in and the Smurfs left with Anelia to find Denisa and the other Smurfs.

The wizard rubbed his head with hand after having snake skin.

 _Wait a_ _minute. Hand?_

Since Anelia had no mirrors, Gargamel rushed to the washbowl and he found that he was human, just like Anelia promised he would be during the day.

"Thank goodness" he sighed in relief, touching his chest.

Sitting back down on the bed, Gargamel wrapped the blanket around his waist and his legs to cover himself.

Azrael meowed and rubbed against his master's body.

"Hello yourself" said Gargamel, petting the cat.

Then, his smile turned into a sad frown.

"If only this curse would lift upon me already and everything would be back to normal again. I don't want to eat you, or Monty... Or even Denisa."

Azrael understood what his master was feeling. It was like when he ran away when he accidentally scratched Gargamel.

Just then, the mongoose and a beautiful wildcat, who was the same size as Azrael, came into the room.

"Hi there, long nose!" cheered the mongoose. "I'm Skitter, Anelia's servant."

Embarrassed by his nude body, Gargamel tried to cover the rest of his body with the blanket.

"W-W-What do you want?" he asked.

"No worries, sir" replied Skitter. "Truffles here wanted to give you something."

The wildcat, Truffles, dragged something into the room and climbed on Gargamel's bed.

It was his robe and shoes that he left in the forest after his snake transformation. It's not badly damaged, only the patches were missing and the bottom of the robe was ripped.

"We removed the patches so we made it easy when you transform at night" said Skitter.

Without much of a thank you, Gargamel threw the robe over himself.

"Feeling better?" asked Skitter.

"Not much" sighed Gargamel.

Azrael walked over to Gargamel's bare feet and snuggled close, feeling sorry for his master.

"It's alright, Azrael. I'm scared too" said the wizard.

He picked up Azrael and hugged him the same way he held the cat when the two were reunited in the meadow after the river incident.

At that moment, someone knocked.

"Come in, Anelia" said Skitter.

Anelia and the Smurfs entered the room.

"Gargamel, you have a guest" announced Anelia, softly.

The witch gently moved the skirt of her dress to reveal Denisa, close to Monty.

"Hi, Uncle Gargy!" said Denisa, with big puppy dog eyes.

"What are you doing here?" asked Gargamel.

"Miss Anelia said I could see you."

She ran to Gargamel's side and hugged him, starting to cry.

Gargamel was surprised that this little girl was hugging him. No child has ever hugged him at all.

"Uh... No, you mustn't..." stammered Gargamel.

"Anelia told me that evil lady turned you into a snake, Uncle Gargy!" sobbed Denisa. "I'm sorry!"

As Denisa continued to cry on his chest, Gargamel was touched of his own godniece's kindness and pity towards him.

He hates children, but he knew deep down that he cares for Denisa and her safety.

And then, Gargamel did something unexpected. He hugged her back.

The embrace made Papa Smurf and Anelia realize something.

"It's time" they both said in unison.

They knew it was time for Gargamel and Denisa to spend some quality time together, hopefully sometime later today or tonight.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	16. The Argument

_**Alright, everyone!**_

 _ **Nobody likes to argue with others, especially with children. Watch and see what happens when Gargamel and the Smurfs discover the secret of the "necklace" Denisa found.**_

* * *

In Anelia's courtyard, the Smurfs and Smurfettes gathered around by an old tree stump.

"Too bad the others had to miss this" giggled SmurfBlossom.

"Well, we can't have 200 Smurfs traveling together" replied Papa Smurf. "That is why Hominibus agreed to have the remaining Smurfs evacuate with him."

Anelia sat on a small, little bench until Gargamel and Denisa arrived.

"Are you sure about this?" asked Gargamel.

"It can be done, Gargamel" answered Anelia.

Azrael and Truffles passed by, loving on each other.

"If our cats have learned to love each other" continued the witch. "So can you and Denisa."

"Really?" smiled Denisa.

Anelia nodded and placed Denisa on the bench.

"Now, my little one, what do you have in common with your godfather, Gargamel?"

Denisa wasn't sure, she barely knew Gargamel long enough. So, she decided to go along with it.

"Um..." started Denisa.

"Uncle Gargy and I have the same hair color... we both like Azrael... and we like eggs for breakfast..."

Anelia then noticed something around Denisa's neck.

It wasn't until Gargamel had took the time to notice his old friend's staring and get Denisa to stop talking.

"What is it?" asked Papa Smurf.

Wanting a better look, Anelia looked carefully at the necklace around Denisa's neck.

Gargamel looked straight at Denisa's neck.

"Is that...?" he frowned.

And then, Anelia jumped back in surprise.

"OH, MY!" she screamed.

"What is it? What's wrong?" cried Denisa, confused.

"YOU FOUND THE STONE OF SULTRY VAPOR!" Gargamel and Anelia shouted in unison.

Papa Smurf and SmurfWillow approached the wizard and witch, concerned.

"The Stone of Sultry Vapor? Are we talking about _the_ Stone of Sultry Vapor?" asked SmurfWillow.

Denisa got up and removed the necklace from her neck.

"Here" she said, giving it to Anelia.

Half worried, Anelia held the Stone.

"This amulet all this time..." sighed the witch.

But, Gargamel was very angry and got close to Denisa's face.

"Where did you get that?" he scolded.

"Nowhere" Denisa answered timidly. "Just a small little village where SmurfWillow, the others and I went to that was destroyed by the Black Shards."

The Smurfs gasped in horror.

"They're getting closer!" cried Clumsy.

"What are we gonna do?" whimpered SmurfBlossom.

As the Smurfs continued to panic, Anelia was concerned.

"I'm sure there's a way to prevent them from spreading" she said. "We may have to use the Stone's power. Everyone, follow me."

But as the Smurfs followed Anelia, Gargamel grabbed Denisa by the collar of her dress.

"How long have you spending time with them?" he asked, angrily.

"Uh... For a while." Denisa answered.

"You have been sneaking out while I was in the castle?"

"Actually, Smurfette took me with her to the forest. They're not dangerous, Uncle Gargy."

Gargamel was shocked at this. His own godniece playing with his enemies.

"Densia, you're too young to go with small creature. You're only five" the wizard snapped.

"Six and a half" remarked Denisa.

"Denisa, you need to listen to me, I-"

"You really hate the Smurfs, don't you?"

At this rate, Gargamel had enough of Denisa's sass.

"You deliberately disobeyed me!" he shouted.

"I don't want you going near those Smurfs again! They're no longer your concern! They're the enemy!"

"YOU'RE LYING!" Denisa cried, standing up to Gargamel.

"NO, I'M NOT! AND IF YOU GO NEAR THEM AGAIN, YOU WILL BE PUNISHED!"

Denisa didn't believe it, she knew that Gargamel was lying just to get her going.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!" she screamed as she stood up to Gargamel.

"I'M SICK AND TIRED OF YOU AND THE SMURFS FIGHTING! JUST BECAUSE YOU HATE EACH OTHER, IT DOESN'T MEAN YOU HAVE TO _**BE** _ENEMIES! AND HOW WOULD YOU KNOW ABOUT THEM? YOU'VE NEVER GOT TO _**KNOW** _THEM! YOU'RE MEAN, SOUR, CRAFTY AND CRUEL! I WISH I NEVER MET YOU! AND IT BE BETTER IF I NEVER HAVE **_YOU_ **AS AN UNCLE!"

Upon hearing the last, hateful words, Gargamel was shocked.

The Smurfs, even Azrael, gasped at Denisa's words.

Upset, Denisa ran up the stairs and into the castle, crying.

"Oh, no" moaned Gargamel as he sat down. "I've become my mother."

Papa Smurf was afraid of the heated argument. He approached the wizard.

"Gargamel, I knew it would happen sometime soon" said the old Smurf. "You have to tell her the truth."

He didn't want to tell Denisa about his past of how he encountered the Smurfs in the first place, but Gargamel knew that if he doesn't tell her, he would lose her like he almost lost Azrael.

"You're right, Papa Smurf" said Gargamel.

But before anyone could get up and get in the castle...

"Papa Smurf! Papa Smurf! Denisa is gone!" cried SmurfBlossom.

"WHAT?!" shouted Papa Smurf.

"We tried to stop her" SmurfWillow said, nervously. "But, she was too upset with Gargamel."

This news made Gargamel very shocked.

 _If Denisa ran away..._ Gargamel thought to himself. _Where would she be going to?_

* * *

 ** _Denisa is gone. What will happen? Will Gargamel and the Smurfs find her before someone else does?_**

 ** _To be continued..._**


	17. Lord Balthazar

_**Only three more days until I'm gone for Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday afternoon for the performance of the Wizard of Oz with me as the Wicked Witch!**_

 _ **It's been a while since the last chapter, so I'm taking it easy.**_

* * *

It took them all day to search for Denisa, but the Smurfs, Gargamel, Anelia, not even Azrael and Monty couldn't find her.

What they didn't know was that Denisa found herself near a pound, where no one would ever find her.

"Uncle Gargy is wrong!" she cried. "The Smurfs aren't evil!"

But then, she heard a loud, booming voice.

"LITTLE GIRL!"

Denisa gasped and turned to see a powerful wizard. He was greater than Gargamel, but he didn't seem friendly.

"What do you want?" she asked timidly.

"You must famished and cold, my dear" the man answered, rather calmly. "Come with me."

"But, who are you?"

"Young lady, I am Lord Balthazar."

Denisa was nervous towards Balthazar until he helped her on her feet.

When Balthazar brought her to his castle, Denisa left a little bit better and sat in his chair.

"Thank you, Mr. Balthazar, sir" she said, sweetly.

But then, she noticed the weapons like muskets, a spear and three different swords on the wall beside Balthazar.

"What is it, child?" the wizard asked Denisa.

"Are you related to Gelsa?" Denisa frowned.

"No, why do you ask?"

"You have weapons."

Gasping, Balthazar pulled a curtain to hide the weapons.

"Oh, don't worry, child" he answered. "I only use them to defend myself. They're my magic weapons."

Denisa had to chow down her dinner to take her mind off the weapons. It wasn't until later that she decided to express her feelings.

"You see, Balthazar" she started.

"It was when my friends and I found this necklace, the Stone of Sultry Vapor. When my friends' parents asked about it, my uncle and I fought. You see, my uncle... My uncle doesn't understand me."

Balthazar nodded slowly, he somewhat understood what Denisa was saying.

"I see" he said. "Well, your uncle perhaps needs to be enlightened a bit, Densia, my dear. All you have to do is..."

"Enlightened?" gasped Denisa. "Yeah! So, my uncle can understand that the Smurfs-"

But Denisa was stopped when Balthazar chuckled, almost cruelly.

"Smurfs?" scoffed Balthazar. "There's no such thing."

"Of course, there is! I saw them myself!" protested Denisa.

Suddenly, her bag started to shake and fell onto the floor.

And then, Smurfette popped out.

Looking at Smurfette, Balthazar was surprised.

"A smurf!" he gasped. "They are real!"

"Smurfette!" Denisa jumped in shock. "What are you doing here?"

"Denisa, we have to get outta here!" Smurfette pleaded.

"Gargamel is worried sick about you! Everyone is looking for you!"

Angry, Balthazar pulled out a musket and aimed it at Smurfette.

"NO!" cried Denisa.

The girl grabbed Smurfette just before the musket's bullet could harm the Smurf.

"You little brats are not going anywhere" snarled Balthazar. "Not with you two telling my godson, Gargamel my plans."

" _Your_ plans?" the girls asked in unison.

Balthazar chuckled evilly and snapped his fingers, Gelsa, Aglæca and a now blind Zherlon Sven entered the room.

Smurfette and Denisa gasped, backing away until they found themselves cornered.

"You're all are involved with the Black Shards" Smurfette realized. "But, why are you doing this? There are innocent people who have done nothing!"

But before Denisa could say anything, Balthazar grabbed her by the skirt of her dress and leaned into her and said...

"With my Black Shards running in everywhere in the world, I will see the future of magic and the world will bow to me. But, I cannot risk you and your Smurf friend telling Gargamel about our plan. I propose we take away his life."

"No!" whimpered Denisa.

"You can't harm Gargamel!" agreed Smurfette.

"Well" chuckled Balthazar. "If you want Gargamel alive, you two will have to do something... for me."

Denisa and Smurfette were so scared, they didn't want Gargamel to get hurt. But, they had no choice.

* * *

 _ **What does Balthazar want Denisa and Smurfette to do? Will the other Smurfs and Gargamel find them?**_

 _ **To be continued...**_


	18. Balthazar's Plot

_**I'm finally back, so here's chapter 18!**_

* * *

"Denny!"

"Denisa, where are you?"

"Denny! Where are you, my child?"

"Anything, Papa Smurf?" asked SmurfLily.

"No, and Smurfette is missing too" responded the old Smurf.

"We'll find her, Papa Smurf" promised Hefty. "No Smurf left behind."

The Smurfs were riding on Gargamel, Azrael and Monty as they searched through the forest, looking for Denisa.

Gargamel had changed into his boa form and part of him was worried.

 _What if Denisa doesn't listen?_ he questioned himself. _What if she is in trouble? And when I find her, what will I do?_

Then, they came up to a sign.

"The castle of Lord Balthazar, two miles" the Smurfs read in unison.

But when he heard the dreadful name that made him nervous, Gargamel gulped and read the note below the sign.

"I'd turn back if I were you, you idiot."

Gargamel tried to leave, but Azrael tugged on his master's tail and shook his head.

The Smurfs frowned at Gargamel and shook their heads.

"I hate you Smurfsss" hissed the wizard-boa.

SmurfStorm poked her arrow at Gargamel, forcing him to keep moving.

"I'm going, you butterball of sass!" he growled at SmurfStorm.

"Keep talking, wizard!" SmurfStorm snapped.

"But, Gargamel, aren't you just gonna stay and cry?" asked a concerned SmurfBlossom.

"I'd like to hiss at those enemies with my tongue!" Gargamel shouted with bravery.

The Smurfs smiled as if Gargamel had forgotten his cowardly nature, but the wizard said something that made them feel disappointed.

"But, I think I lost my hisser."

Azrael rolled his eyes and urged Gargamel to keep going.

Suddenly, Monty heard screaming and flew up above the forest, with Hefty, Clumsy and SmurfLily.

"What is it, boy?" asked Hefty.

Monty didn't answer and flew in the direction of the screaming.

"Monty!" shouted Gargamel. "Monty, get back here! Monty!"

Papa Smurf was concerned. He knew who's screaming it was.

"Denisa" he gasped.

"It couldn't be" said SmurfWillow. "Denisa is a sweet little girl."

"No, no. Denisa would scream like that."

Azrael meowed, almost shocked of what kind of danger Denisa could be in.

"Follow them, Azrael!" said Papa.

The cat didn't have to think twice and ran off with Papa, SmurfWillow and SmurfStorm.

Gargamel was left alone, well almost alone.

SmurfBlossom stood by his side, hiding behind his coils.

* * *

The Smurfs, Azrael and Monty reached the castle of Lord Balthazar and peeked through a window to find Denisa and Smurfette held captive by Gelsa.

"You won't get away with this!" cried Smurfette.

"Yeah!" agreed Denisa. "The Smurfs will come and rescue us!"

"They'll never find you here" sneered Gela.

"Balthazar has plans to do in any enemy that tries to destroy his Black Shards. Most people believe that these shards are a myth, which is why Balthazar plans to use them as a wall to protect his castle and to show them that he is the most powerful sorcerer in the world!"

"But first, Gelsa" Balthazar spoke. "We will need some assistance from these girls..."

"And what's that?" questioned Smurfette.

"All you have to do is bring me... the Stone of Sultry Vapor."

"But, we don't have it" protested Denisa.

"Bring me the stone before the next sundown and I will spare you and Gargamel. Now go before I change my mind."

"What if we don't?" asked Smurfette, almost in a mocking tone.

"THEN, YOU WILL ALL DIE!" bellowed Balthazar. "Now GO!"

"I'm pretty sure the Black Shards will kill us first."

"ARE YOU DEAF?! I SAID GO!"

Scared, Denisa and Smurfette ran out of the castle and into the forest.

"Keep running, Denny!" cried Smurfette.

"I'm trying, I'm trying!" whimpered Denisa.

But when Denisa took a turn, she bumped into something.

"Ouch! Something stepped on my coils!"

Denisa screamed and fell to the ground.

"Denisa, are you okay?" asked Smurfette.

"Yeah, I'm okay" answered Denisa.

"Get off me!" screamed a voice.

Denisa screamed and backed away until she fell onto a tree, crying.

"Denisa" sighed Gargamel. "You scared me."

But poor Denisa was too busy crying to recognize Gargamel, even after her encounter with Balthazar.

Azrael, Monty and the other Smurfs arrived.

"Hi, Papa" whimpered Smurfette. "You heard?"

"Yes, Smurfette" replied Papa. "We heard everything, but how did you end up with Denisa in the first place?"

"When we tried to convince her not to leave Anelia's castle, I fell into her bag."

"I see... but, I'm glad that the two of you are safe."

Just then, the sun rose.

Seeing the bright sunlight, Gargamel quickly covered himself with a long, dark robe that Anelia provided for emergencies.

The Smurfs blocked their eyes as Gargamel was bathed within the sunlight and changed back into his human form.

Denisa sobbed harder until she felt a human hand touch her.

"It's alright, Denisa" whispered Gargamel. "Everything is going to be alright. I'm sorry."

Relieved that Gargamel was with her, Denisa jumped into his arms and the two embraced.

The Smurfs were pleased of Gargamel and Denisa reconciled, but they knew Balthazar's threat has only begun.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	19. Wind Howlers

Back at the hovel, the Black Shard that Gargamel used has multiplied and spread in the entire house.

The door swung open.

"Gargamel! It's your mother!" screamed an angry voice.

No response. She called for her son again.

"Gargamel? Where is Denisa?"

Panic built up inside and Gargamel's mother ran to look in the bedroom, to see if he or Denisa were there.

"Denisa? Gargamel?"

She threw the bed covers on the floor, but no Gargamel or Denisa.

She checked in the laboratory.

"GARGAMEL! DENISA!"

Sure, she was disappointed in him for ruining his own future and flunking wizardry school, but Gargamel's mother was worried about him as he was her only child. And if she found out that her godchild was killed, Denisa's mother would get mad at her.

Frantic, she checked up in the tower, the laboratory, the basement, she even checked to see if he was in one of the cages meant for the Smurfs. She checked all over the hovel and yet no sign of Gargamel or Denisa.

"Where are you?" she asked, angrily yet fearfully.

Then, something shined in Gargamel's mother's eye.

She looked down to find the telescope on the floor.

Gasping, Gargamel's mother took the telescope and looked through it.

She saw footprints of Balthazar and Gelsa and she also found Gargamel's ruined leggings and shoes from his first boa transformation.

"Balthazar" she panted, fearing the worst.

The wind blew and a letter flew into her face.

"What's this?" asked Gargamel's mother.

She began reading the letter.

" _Dear Mummy,_

 _If you had found this letter, that means by now Denisa and I have gone into hiding from the Black Shards._ _I'm really am sorry for being a disappointment to you, I was only trying to make you proud of me. I must make things right._

 _your son Gargamel_

 _P.S._

 _If I don't come back alive, bring Denisa back home, set Monty free, dispose the magic potions and spell books and burn the hovel to the ground and please take Azrael._ _He's mangy, full of fleas and you hate him, I know. But he's the only friend I've got since we found him._ "

Gargamel's mother sighed sadly and set the letter aside.

She went back to the bedroom and found something that brought back a happy memory. She found a stone brick on the night stand.

The brick had a green tiny kitten paw print painted on or rather the kitten accidentally stepped in one of the paints and walked around the hovel leaving a trail of red, green and yellow paw prints all round. By the time she and Gargamel cleaned it up, his mother wanted to keep at least one brick.

Gargamel's mother placed the brick on the bed.

"Oh, my poor little Gargy" she said sadly as she turned her head toward the window. "Please, be safe."

* * *

The Smurfs examined the Stone of Sultry Vapor.

"Are you sure about this?" Smurf Willow asked.

"If Balthazar wants this, he will use its power to make the Black Shards rise and take over our homes" replied Papa Smurf.

Anelia's eyes suddenly widen in surprise, she had an idea.

"I know someone who can help" she said.

"Who?" asked Smurfette.

"Not far from my mountain, the silverback wolves are the only animals in the Forbidden Forest who can read other's thoughts."

"Silverback wolves?" frowned Hefty.

"We never encountered them" added Brainy. "We don't even know where they reside."

Truffles jumped onto the table and nudged her head towards a map on the wall.

"The Swamp of No Return?!" shouted the Smurfettes.

"There's no way we'd survive" snapped SmurfStorm, rolling her eyes.

"I'm afraid it's your only hope" answered Anelia.

The Smurfs weren't sure what to think about the predators that could help them, but Anelia was right; these creatures _are_ their only hope to stop Balthazar and the Black Shards.

"I'll go tell Gargamel and Denisa" said Smurfette.

It was around after lunch when the Smurfs, Gargamel, Denisa, Azrael and Monty left Anelia's castle.

Truffles decided to tag along, just to be Azrael's side.

It was long process of walking through the forest without attracting any signs of danger, but it was a worth of try to find the silverback wolves.

However, it got _too_ quiet when they reached the Swamp of No Return.

It was not the same as Gargamel, Azrael and Monty went through; the river was fine, no one else was there expect the fish, who were still frozen solid from winter. Even though it was now safe for Gargamel, but the swamp itself was still creepy looking as it was in the summer.

"Eh" said an unsure Gargamel to himself. "I prefer the cold, haunting weather than a happy, warm environment."

The Smurfs hopped on the frozen fish and went across it as if it were a bridge.

But as he walked through the water, Gargamel couldn't help but feel quite nervous as the trees suddenly took shape of clawed hands.

"Now that you mentioned it, Gargamel, nature has become haunted" moaned Brainy.

"Keep it down, Brainy" said Papa. "There still could be predators!"

"PREDATORS?!" gasped Denisa.

"Oh, no" said a worried Gargamel.

Suddenly, the Smurfs and Gargamel heard loud howling.

"What was that?" asked Denisa, nervously.

SmurfStorm held her bow and arrow defensively and stayed close to Denisa's leg.

Then, a large wolf with glowing eerie eyes emerged from the dark. It seemed calm, but it had a ghost transparent appearance with a long, ghost tail that blew along with the cold wind.

"Th-Th-That's not a silverback wolf!" stammered Smurfette.

"Wind howlers" whispered Smurf Willow.

"Time to go, Gargamel!" cried Papa Smurf.

Gargamel couldn't help but laugh.

"That?" he asked. "That is a dangerous animal? Ha!"

Gargamel and Azrael started to make a show of themselves by taunting the lone wind howler.

"Hey! What's the matter? Not hungry?" laughed the wizard.

Azrael laughed.

"Ooh! I'm so scared! I'm afraid of the big bad wolf! Ha, ha! The big, bad dog's an act!"

However, the Smurfs knew it wasn't a joke. This creature is dangerous than it is beautiful than any other wolf.

"Gargamel, I'm serious!" yelled Smurf Willow.

"Stop fooling around!" pleaded Smurf Lily.

"He'll call the others and they'll catch you!" cried Smurf Blossom.

But Gargamel didn't stop, he and Azrael continued to mock the wind howler.

"Ooooh!" mocked Gargamel, then he proceeded in a low pitched voice. "'I'm a big, bad wolf! I'll eat you in one bite!' Oh, yeah? You and what army?"

The wind howler had enough. It howled loudly into the daylight...

...and a whole pack of wind howlers emerged from the shadows of the Swamp of No Return. They were all like the alpha, ghost transparent and long, windy tails. They growled viciously at Gargamel, baring their teeth at him.

"Uh-oh" Azrael muttered in cat language.

"Oh, _that_ army" groaned Gargamel.

"Gargamel!" called Smurfette. "Get out of there!"

The wind howlers went after Gargamel, who ran for his life.

"Help me! Help me!" screamed the wizard. "I don't wanna be lunch!"

The Smurfs and Gargamel ran with the animals and Denisa close to them and the wind howlers in hot pursuit.

"Hurry, Uncle Gargie, hurry!" cried Denisa.

"Mummy!" screamed Gargamel.

They ran inside a cave and pulled a rock to block the entrance, making the wind howlers run pass them.

"Whew! That was close" said Hefty.

"Do you realize that your recklessness nearly caused our deaths?" Papa Smurf asked Gargamel.

"No" said the wizard.

But then, a small animal approached them.

 _No, please_ thought Denisa.

The creature growled, its eyes growling green.

" _How do I know I can trust outsiders like you?_ " it seemed to say.

Then, Smurf Lily gasped.

"You guys!" she cried.

"The creature is a silverback wolf! She can read our thoughts!"

Emerging from the dark, the creature revealed itself as a cute, silverback wolf cub. Her name was Chip.

"Please" said Smurfette. "We need the silverback wolves' help about the Stone of Sultry Vapor."

Hearing this, Chip barked happily and licked Denisa's face.

" _Hooray! Hooray!_ " the cub shouted in thought. " _I'm so glad you hid in our cave! I'm gonna take you to my mama and papa!_ "

"Your mama and papa?" asked Denisa and the Smurfettes, nearly panicking.

"Are you sure your parents won't mind us?" whimpered Clumsy.

" _Don't worry, little guy_ " assured Chip. " _My parents' friends were the witches who raised me after I was kidnapped by a big, fat wizard_ _._ "

Gargamel was nervous of Chip, but the Smurfs hopped on Azrael and Truffles' back and followed her and Denisa deep in the cave.

Monty screeched at his master.

"So what if the silverback is friendly?" snapped the wizard. "She said she's gonna help us with the Stone... and maybe help me with my curse."

Gargamel made his decision and went on deep into the cave.

But, Monty felt like his master has betrayed him.

He pushed the rock aside, moving it and flew away.

* * *

 _ **How will the Smurfs, Gargamel and Denisa react to the other silverback wolves? Will the wolves help them?**_

 _ **Stay tuned...**_

 _ **Chip is a new OC character in the story.**_


	20. Home of the Silverback WolvesCaptured

_**Finally after painstaking thinking, here's chapter 20!**_

* * *

It was a long tunnel they were going through, it felt like it was going to a long time to reach the home of the silverback wolves, but Chip knew where she was going. She knew this place ever since the day she was born.

But when night finally came, Gargamel soon transformed into his boa form.

"Does this curse scare you, Uncle Gargy?" Denisa asked him nervously.

"A little bit" replied Gargamel. "Actually, it frightensss me. I can't take more of thissss pain."

Tears filled in Gargamel's eyes, he hated that he was hissing but he remembered what Anelia said. He was going to slip here and there.

Azrael meowed at his master, concerned.

"I'll be all right" choked Gargamel, trying to hold back tears. "It will be all right."

Finally, Chip lead them to a large room filled with silverback wolves.

The Smurfs and Denisa gasped in awe.

"The home of the silverback wolves" smiled Papa.

All of the silverback wolves starred at their new visitors, not sure what to expect with them.

Standing on a rocky platform are two larger silverback wolves.

" _Mama, Papa_!" Chip barked cheerfully.

She ran to the platform and then quickly bowed to them.

" _I mean King Ra'me and Queen Kina. I have brought these visitors from outside the cave who seek our help._ "

The Smurfs weren't sure what to do.

"Don't worry" replied Papa. "Silverback wolves communicate through barking. It's different from how they read our thoughts."

 _"Welcome to our home"_ said King Ra'me.

The Smurfs, then Denisa bowed in respect.

The two wolves walked down from their throne and sniffed the strange visitors.

 _"They look and sound friendly"_ thought Kina.

 _"But the boa and the cat seem so cruel"_ replied Ra'me.

"I'm not a boa!" cried Gargamel, desperately. "I'm really a wizard turned into a boa!"

Hearing this, the silverback wolves gasped and murmured to each other quietly.

Ra'me and Kina were concerned out of all the wolves.

 _"Can't we at least help him, Dad?"_ asked Chip.

 _"I don't know"_ answered Ra'me. _"But what I can do is this..."_

He slowly and gently took the Stone of Sultry Vapor from Denisa.

By placing it in the moonlight, the Stone suddenly glowed and light beams spread across the cave.

"Whoa" gasped the Smurfs.

Denisa, Azrael and Chip watched in the waterfall as the moonlight, powered by the Stone, shined on all the Black Shards and they slowly begin to dissolve into nothingness.

"Well, that takes care of our Black Shard problem" smiled Smurf Willow.

"But that doesn't help us with all those who have been turned into animals by Balthazar!" snapped Gargamel.

The silverback wolves ran away in fear upon hearing that dreadful name.

Azrael rolled his eyes as if to say 'what dummies.'

Only Chip and her parents remained.

"Is there anything else you can do to help us?" asked Papa Smurf.

 _"I'm afraid not"_ said Kina. _"We cannot undo any of Balthazar or Gela's spells. They're too powerful for us to handle."_

Hearing this, Gargamel felt like his heart had been stabbed by a sword.

 _"Perhaps maybe you would stay until the snowstorm stops?"_ barked Chip excitedly, wagging her tail.

The Smurfs shouted for joy and ran after Chip.

Ra'me and Kina chuckled as their daughter left.

Denisa then approached Gargamel with a light smile despite feeling concerned for him.

"Oh, Uncle Gargy, do you wanna come play with us?" she asked.

"No, you go ahead" replied Gargamel. "Azrael and I have to get my clothes back at the front entrance."

Azrael frowned at Gargamel. He knew what his master was up to.

"But you've got plenty of clothes, in my bag" Denisa protested.

"Not when I'm a killer boa at night. I don't want to be a boa, I don't want to die either."

"You won't. You've got me, Azrael and the Smurfs."

"I wouldn't even play with those blue vermin if I had a case of pneumonia in my chest or my..."

At this rate, Denisa shrieked so loud that it echoed off the cave walls!

She walked away with tears in her eyes.

Smurf Willow, who has been watching them, gave Gargamel a glare.

"You should have _not_ mentioned her mother's condition like that!" she scolded. "You have got four minutes to come up with a _proper_ apology."

Refusing to listen, Gargamel slithered away.

Kina and Ra'me shook their heads.

 _"He tries to be evil"_ said Kina. _"But his scales are thin and not tough."_

Azrael knew that he shouldn't give up on Gargamel and followed him.

"Cat" Smurf Willow called.

The ginger cat hissed and was ready to attack, but heard Smurf Willow's gentle voice.

"Be careful."

Taking her advice, Azrael nods his thanks and then ran off to help his master before anything happens to him.

* * *

The Smurfs were playing hide and seek with Chip, with the young silverback wolf as the seeker.

By the time Chip finished counting to 90, she howled loud as she could.

 _"Ready or not, here I come!"_

Chip ran towards a hole, her nose on the ground and then found Smurf Lily.

"You found me!" cheered the little smurf.

The two then started searching for everyone else, eventually Chip found Smurf Blossom.

"Hi there! Nobody finds me!" she laughed.

Later finding all eight playing Smurfs in their hiding places, Densia, Truffles and Chip were playing tag until they were tired of running.

All the fun they've had has helped Denisa forget her anger towards Gargamel.

"Has anybody seen Gargamel?" asked Papa Smurf.

"He said that he and Azrael were getting his clothes" answered Densia.

"But he has plenty of clothes in our travel bags" replied Smurfette.

Soon, Smurf Willow arrived and told Papa what happened between Gargamel and Denisa.

"Do you think we should help Gargamel?" asked Papa.

"No, I think Azrael's got it" smiled Smurf Willow.

* * *

Within the tunnel of the cave, Gargamel was determined to find a way to break his curse, even if it took his life.

Now that the Black Shards are gone, he cannot be killed if he ever touched one. But the problem is, he still had to find someone who would love him for who he is.

He pushed the rock out of the way and slithered through the snow when Azrael stopped him.

"What is your problem, Azrael?!" hissed Gargamel.

Azrael used every meow he could muster, trying to protest against his master's depression.

"Denisa could never save me, Azrael! She's not even my own _real_ niece!"

Azrael meowed to correct him.

"Godniece, whatever! But if there's one that's true, Denisa is NOTHING LIKE ME! AND SHE WILL NEVER BE!"

But before Azrael could say anything, Gargamel was grabbed by the neck!

It was Gisela!

"Wait until you see what your godfather has in store for you!" she cackled.

"Azrael, help!" cried Gargamel as he was choking.

The cat tried to help, only to be pinned down by Aglæca.

"Azrael!"

The Smurfs, Denisa and Ra'me emerged from behind the rock and raced to see what's happening before them.

Truffles raced to Azrael's side and clawed Aglæca in the face, making the green cat shriek and run away.

They all watched as Gelsa rolled Gargamel's body halfway and carried him away over her shoulder.

"Denisa!"

"GARGAMEL!"

* * *

 _ **Will the Smurfs rescue Gargamel? Can they break the curse before Balthazar ruins everything?**_

 _ **To be continued...**_


End file.
